


World Party

by Starren_Moonstone



Series: Timewatch [4]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Attempt at Humor, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluffy Ending, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-10
Updated: 2016-04-10
Packaged: 2018-06-01 08:55:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 31,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6511486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Starren_Moonstone/pseuds/Starren_Moonstone
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The countdown to Gilbert's (Prussia) party has begun. The nations are gathering and the band chosen for the entertainment is preparing. Throughout this, the band learns about the complicated relationship between Ludwig and Feliciano (and end up helping) as well as how connected the nations of the world really are.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story has a playlist that goes along with it, that can be accessed through this link: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLaO9vIg6HeW12Y5R2ZimsVtUs6qw-BM5j.  
> Also, all the OCs are my own creations. Here is the official list of all the OC characters in the band along with their respective nationalities: Gretel – German, Kevin & Kate – American, Taylor – Canadian, Valentina – Austrian, Sota – Japanese, Gennarino – Italian, Chloé – French, Raisa – Russian, Martina – Chilean, Victoria – Welsh, Jose - Spanish.The other OCs that appear in this story are a few of the US states, whom I will introduce in the chapters they show up in.  
> The fan-made characters, like Northern Ireland and Wales, are only my interpretations of their characters.

**How the Band Got Together**

Sota always worked on his songs in a corner of the computer lab that no one ever used. It gave him privacy to be able to think clearly about what he was writing down. With his headphones on and his focus on the words, he could escape reality for a long time.

  
But even so, he always wanted to be able to connect with other people around him. It was hard for him, though.

That was, until someone decided to come into his little corner of the world. Enter in Kate, an American student. Out of all the seats in the computer lab, she decided to sit next to him in the corner.

After talking for a bit, they realized they had similar interests. Both of them liked creating music. From there, they talked about what it would be like getting a band together. Sota said that it would be hard since out of the two of them, Sota was the only one to know how to play an instrument, and they were from two different countries. Kate replied with, "So we get people from different countries."

And that was the beginning of the band. Victoria and Jose were the next ones to get involved, both expressing their interest in music. Jose reached out to Martina, Kate reached out to Kevin. And the others kinda tumbled in after that; they were in the same classes as the others. Once the group was formed, they had the great idea of going into the English countryside and bond. Everyone except for Kate went; Kate had a test that she had to take and she needed to focus on it.

While there, Jose and Victoria got split up from the group and got lost. In the rain. Luckily, they were able to get some help from a few of the local nation personifications, learning about them during that time. They kept the secret to themselves, and figured that they probably wouldn't see them again (except for Victoria, but she is a different story).

Let's just say, they were wrong.

* * *

  
**The Call that Started Their Ball Rolling**

Jose was fooling around with his guitar when the phone rang. It was the special one the group paid for together for the band. Gretel looked up from her history text book; they were the only ones in the room. Coincidentally, neither of them liked answering phones.

Gretel and Jose looked at each other, hoping the other would answer the call. Finally, Jose got up and answered the phone, "Hello?" he asked, a bit hesitant.

"Ja, um, is this Jose?"

"Si…?"

"You sound uncertain."

"Sorry, it's just… we haven't had many calls, sir. What's your name and even better, who gave you the number?"

"Oh, right, he told me to give you his name. North sent me to you." Jose couldn't help but smile at this. He liked North, the guy was energetic and took the kids seriously. "You can call me Gilbert."

By this point, Gretel had closed her book and walked over to where Jose was. "So, Gilbert, you're a friend of North's?"

"Ehhh, more like acquaintances. We met each other through work."

Jose couldn't help but grin. So this guy was a nation as well. He couldn't ask which one seeing as Gretel was in the room. "So what can we do for you?"

"I am planning a super awesome party and I want your band to be the entertainment."

"Cool!" Jose said excitedly, then remembered he needed to sound somewhat professional when on the phone, "Sorry… it's just we've been doing simple things for a while now."

"Oh, like?"

"Mostly just school things. Nothing that exciting and barely anyone shows up."

"Well, I do want to hear you perform anyway, to hear how awesome you sound, and meet you in person. How's next week sound?"

Jose looked up at Gretel. She looked a little annoyed, but at the same time gave an approving nod. "Yes, exactly a week from now?"

"Works for me. Where at?"

Jose gave Gilbert the address. "Good. See you then."

Jose hung up the phone. "I think we have our first big thing."

"Of course it has to be during finals week too."

"Don't be such a pessimist," Jose said, sticking his tongue out at her, "This is about the first good thing that's happened to us all week. Think of it as an early Christmas present. Besides, this is just listening to what we can do."

Gretel nodded. "You're right. I'm just not looking forward to next week at all."

"Then this is something to look forward to."


	2. Chapter 2

Victoria's mobile went off during the exam. Not sound wise, thank God, but it vibrated in her pocket. And it kept vibrating.

'I am trying to take a test,' she thought silently, 'And you all know it.' She explained to her friends beforehand (the ones who would usually text her during class at least) not to bother her during the time she had her test.

She finished the test (in her own time, she didn't let the stupid mobile dictate her speed) and ran out of the building. Looking at the calls she missed, only one of them was from another known human: Jose. He only called once. The other numbers were from Spéir, Arthur, and one other number she didn't recognize.

'What the hell happened?' she thought as she first called Jose. 'Did the world end or something?'

"Hey! How did your test go?" Jose asked when he answered his phone.

"You are so bloody lucky I had my phone on vibrate!" Victoria shouted at him.

"Maldito… what got under your skin?"

Victoria took a moment to calm down before answering, "The test was god awful. I felt under-prepared for it."

"You say that about every test, and you still do well."

Victoria couldn't argue with that. "What happened?"

"We got an actual job offer!" Jose said excitedly. Victoria had to hold the phone away from her ear for a moment. "From a guy named Gilbert. I'll tell you more about it when you come over here. Group meeting!"

"Alright, I'll be there later." Victoria ends the call.

She next calls Arthur. She had been keen to keep tabs with Arthur a bit more, seeing as he had suffered from loneliness. Not that she ever did so unwillingly. Even before she learned about Arthur being a nation, she found the man interesting. He knew history better than anyone she knew; she always came to him with history questions.

"Hello?" Arthur asked. He sounded business-like and Victoria figured that he was at work.

"Hello, Arthur. It's Victoria. Did something happen? I noticed you called several times."

"Yes… first of all, where were you?" Arthur sounded concerned. Like a father would. 'Makes sense, considering he kinda is with Alfred.'

"I was taking an exam, nothing that exciting."

There was a slight pause on the other end. "I was worried."

"You really shouldn't be. I can take care of myself. So, what came up?"

"I wanted your opinion on a matter, actually. Do you think we can meet up sometime soon?"

"Depends. The band has a job offer. I don't know what it's going to entail yet. I will get back to you on that. Is it something important?"

"Not exactly… I just want someone to talk to… other than my brothers."

Victoria knew that tone of voice. Arthur's brothers were being annoying again. "Alright. If worse comes to worse, we have phones."

"…I would like to avoid that with you. I have enough of that at work."

"Fair enough. Talk to you later."

Victoria looked at Spéir's number for a moment. Just why was he calling her? Most of the time, they just ran into each other around London, and that was how they talked to each other.

"Victoria! Where were you?" he sounded worried.

'Seriously, are all nations this concerned about humans?' Victoria thought to herself. "You know I am a student," she stated blandly, "I was taking an exam."

"Oh… sorry… I forgot."

'You and everyone else it seems,' she thought. "Why were you calling?"

"I just wanted to tell you that you might be getting a call soon from a friend of mine. I don't know if he's called you yet."

"Ok…?"

"I only bring this up because he can be a bit much at times."

"Spéir, no offence, but _you_ can be a bit much at times."

"Just… hear him out I guess I want to say."

"Sure, fine. What's he calling about anyway?"

"A job offer."

"…by any chance was his name Gilbert?"

"Yeah, actually. That's one of his aliases anyway."

"He's already called then."

"Oh, good! We'll be meeting up in a week. He wants to hear you all before any definite decision."

"What's all this for anyway?"

"A party! We're going to have a party with all of us nations and our bosses."

Victoria almost dropped her phone, "What?"

"Yeah, so I suggested you guys to play at this event."

Victoria still couldn't believe her ears. "Wow, um… are you sure we are the best people for this?"

"That's why I suggested you guys. Besides, better to have people who already know about us."

"Except only 2 of us do," Victoria pointed out.

"True, but it would actually be better to have students with this than anyone else."

"Why?"

"You've seen Alfred. Most of us are around your age. There’s more of a connection in that respect."

Victoria sighed worriedly, "…sometimes, I do wonder about your sanity."

"Trust me, I'm not as crazy as the others," Spéir stated in a matter of fact manner, "Arthur can get pretty rowdy when prompted."

"Really?" Victoria said incredulously.

"Absolutely. You've never seen him drunk… or around France. Anyway, I have to get going. See you in a week."

"Yeah, see you."

Victoria hung up the phone. 'Well, today just got really interesting,' she thought as she turned her attention to the last number, 'I wonder which country Gilbert represents.' It was something she would have to ask when she met him.

Victoria looked at the mystery caller's number. Judging from the area code, it was someone in France. Not completely odd; Victoria had a few friends in France at the moment. The real question was why would they call on a different phone than their mobile phone?

Victoria hit the send button and waited for the person on the other end to pick up.

"Bonjour?" asked the person on the other end. Victoria didn't recognize his voice at all; he was defiantly French though.

"Hello, you called me earlier, and I am just returning your call." Victoria hoped this person could actually speak English.

"Oh, oui, sorry. I got the wrong number. My friend who I was trying to get a hold of thought it would be funny to give me a fake number when he got his new phone."

And now she was at the butt of a prank. "Well, slap him for me when you see him again."

The man laughed. "Gladly, but may I ask why?"

"I was in the middle of an exam."

"So you are a student then?"

"Yeah."

"Je suis désolé. I hope it did not cause you too much of a problem."

"I'm just lucky I had it on vibrate."

"Well, before we part, might I inquire your name?"

"Victoria."

"Nice to meet you, Victoria. I am Francis. Maybe we will meet again."

"I highly doubt it, but it still could happen. It's a small world."

"That it be. Au revoir."

Victoria hung up the phone. He was a charmer, she'd give him that. But there was no way that they would even meet in real life. Though, she still saved the number under Francis. Just in case. Maybe Chloé knew this guy.

* * *

The group got all together in their little hangout, which was just the common room that Victoria, Gretel, Taylor, and Raisa shared.

"Where's Kate?" Sota asked, once everyone was sitting down.

"Studying," Chloé explained, "She has a maths test soon. And we all know how well she does with that subject."

"Si," Martina said, "Though I wouldn't be surprised if she was just on some social website."

"Let's just give her the benefit of the doubt and pray she passes her exam," Kevin said.

"Yes, just as we do with you when you stay up all night playing video games," Raisa remarked, with a friendly smirk on her face.

"Very funny."

"I'm not joking."

"Alright, you two can flirt later," Jose said, moving so that he sat between them. "Right now, let us talk about that job offer."

"What is it anyway?" Chloé asked, "You didn't say much about it when you told us."

"I wanted it to be a surprise," Jose said, grinning.

"Basically, we're being asked to play at a party," Victoria stated.

"How do you know?" Jose said, obviously feeling cheated of telling his story.

"North called me. Apparently he was worried we wouldn't take this guy seriously."

"Why?" Gennarino asked.

Victoria shrugged. "Did Gilbert sound weird over the phone?"

"No," Jose said slowly, "He was very nice."

"Fine, we are asked to play at a party. Do we have any other details on the matter?" Gretel asked.

"Right, well," Jose said, "Gilbert wants to meet us and hear what we have to offer."

"So it isn't official then?" Kevin whined.

"It is better than nothing," Jose said, "It is better than just sitting and doing nothing."

"Besides, we are awesome," Taylor said, punching Kevin in the shoulder, "We'll show Gilbert we are perfect for this party of his."

"When is he coming?" Martina asked.

"In a week," Jose said.

"So, we need to plan what we want to do," Gretel said.

They all thought about it for a moment. "We can do one of Sota's songs," Taylor suggested.

Sota looked down to the ground. "Are you sure?"

"Why not? They are really cool."

"We can also do one of the language changing songs as well," Chloé said, "Most people are impressed by that."

* * *

Once the meeting was over, Jose took Victoria to another room. "Alright, so Gilbert is a nation, that much is certain," Jose stated.

"Not so loud," Victoria hissed, as she closed the door.

"Ok. He knew North from work, so it's obvious."

Victoria rolled her eyes, "Yes, that was established thoroughly."

"From his accent, I can tell he is German."

"There are also several Germanic countries. We can ask him when we meet him." Victoria made to leave the room.

"But don't you want to guess?"

"Not particularly. I don't want to offend anyone."

"Come on. My bet is that he is German."

"And again, we can ask when we meet him. He could also be Swiss or Austrian as well."

"…fine. By the way, how is North doing?"

"He's fine. Though something got Arthur ticked off."

"Ticked off?" Jose asked, confused. Sure, he knew a good amount of English and learned a lot from Victoria's use of the language, but he was still learning.

"Annoyed," Victoria clarified, "He said he wanted to talk to me about something he couldn't talk to his brothers about."

"Couldn't or wouldn't."

"Probably the latter."

Once again, Jose raised an eyebrow. "Ladder?"

"Latter. This one uses t's, not d's. It refers to the second choice."

"English just keeps getting weirder the more I learn about it. So, when are you meeting up with him?"

Victoria flipped out her mobile phone. "Soon. Probably tomorrow." She paused and looked at Jose. "This party... it isn't a normal party."

"This has to do with nations. Of course it is not going to be a normal party. That is the best part about this."

"No, what I mean is... their bosses are going to be at this party as well."

Jose paled. "Who bosses nations?"

"Just think about it. North said that we are perfect for this, but I'm not sure about that."

"This must be one of those times we just give North the benefit of the doubt. Sí?"

Victoria nodded. "Sí."

* * *

 

**The Next Day**

Victoria met up with Arthur in their usual pub close to St. Paul's Cathedral. As per usual, the two of them had tea. English breakfast, if anyone is curious.

"And how are you doing today?" Victoria asked.

"…I feel like I should have a hangover."

"You were drinking yesterday?"

"No, but my brothers were. I had meetings to go to this morning, so I decided to decline. My boss hates it when I come in hungover."

"Probably for the best… wait, you've done that before?"

"Yes… much to the distaste of many of my prior bosses."

Victoria could only picture Oliver Cromwell giving Arthur the death glare of the century for not following his rules. "So, what have your brothers done this time?" Victoria asked. "That's what this is about, is it not?"

"Not exactly. But first, can I ask how bad is it to bet on people?"

"You've bet on people?"

"Yes, well, there is a party that we are attending and a decision made by the planners was made and it is the most ridiculous thing I had heard of… for a while. Anyway, my brothers decided to bet on who was the one to create the idea, and they dragged me into it."

"What exactly was put on the line?"

"Nothing more than bragging rights. We haven't betted on anything substantial for a long time."

"Then I don't see a problem with it. We humans do it sometimes too."

Arthur didn't look too sure. "But they've made such a big deal about it. I'm just worried that those involved will find out about it."

"If they do, just explain that you didn't agree with it. That simple. Why, do these people get offended easily?"

"Not per say… It would still be awkward."

"No doubt about it. There was actually this one time Kevin and Jose used me for a bet. They wanted to see how long it would take one of them to get me to say yes on a date with one of them.

"Are you serious?"

Victoria nodded, then grinned. "I found out about it and made it very clear to drop the bet and never do that again."

Arthur gave Victoria an impressed look. "Anyway, that's not the reason I'm here, but it's related to all this. For this party, well, it's a costume party."

Victoria nodded and wondered why Arthur would be going to a costume party. "You want an idea?"

"Yes. I know what Scotty would say, and of course everyone else would join in with him just to spite me."

"Oh?"

Arthur sighed. "That is a story for a more private place, trust me." Arthur took a sip of his tea. "I want to know what you suggest."

"As long as you do tell me this story at some point." Victoria took a good look at Arthur. "You'd make a good king."

Arthur shook his head. He didn't say anything against it, but Victoria could tell by his face he really didn't want to do that.

"What about a pirate then? You must be classy in some way."

"Funny. I was thinking you would say detective."

"No. And I think you would make a great pirate."

"…I might still have my gear from those days."

"You were…"

"Yes, that was a long time ago. Alfred was still a child, long before his independence." Arthur looked down a bit sad.

Victoria knew that it must have been a hard time for Arthur, when Alfred became independent. "During the time Britain had a fantastic navy," she said, trying to get Arthur's mind off of something that cannot be changed, "Must have been fun."

Arthur grinned a little. "It was. A part of me still yearns for the sea. But I know that life is long past."

"There's always fishing boats."

"It's not the same."

Victoria just shrugged. Her phone went off, the sound from it was one of an Hispanic guitar. "And that would be Jose. I need to get going. No doubt it's about practice."

"Really?"

"As I said before, we got a job offer recently, and the person putting the event together wants to hear how good we are before anything final is established."

"Good luck, then."

"Ta."


	3. Chapter 3

**(A Week Later)**

**(Putting things in perspective, Gilbert just finished his call with Francis from** _**Ich bin das Heiliges Römisches Reich** _ **ch. 8)**

Gilbert hung up the phone, and sighed in a way Spéir had never heard him use before. It sounded like something Arthur would do when he felt like he was alone in a losing battle (most of the time, concerning sibling friendly fights, but a few times with actual wars).

"Something wrong?" Spéir asked. He wasn't used to seeing Gilbert look so defeated.

"It's nothing you need to worry about," Gilbert said, standing up, "Just some crap that I'm going through."

"Is it about the party?" Spéir could figure what it was; the fact that Gilbert recently lost his nation status. But he promised Ludwig not to say anything about it.

"Nein. Please, I don't want to talk about this. So, where is the place we're meeting them?"

"Right, follow me."

They walked through the streets of London. "So, do they have a name?" Gilbert asked, "The band?"

"No, actually. They were still working on it last time I talked with them," Spéir said. That was a while ago, admittedly.

"They did say they had done a few jigs. Aren't they supposed to have a name?"

Spéir laughed. "Gigs, and yeah. But they changed the name every time. They aren't entirely sure what to call themselves yet. Maybe this will help them with that choice."

By the time they got to the place, Gilbert was more like his usual self. Spéir had a feeling about what that was all about, but he'd wait until later when such heavy topics could be discussed.

"So, as a reminder, human names from here on out." Spéir said.

"I know that. I should quiz you."

"Why?" the English nation asked with a puzzled look on his face.

"A number of us gave ourselves human names some time ago.” Gilbert had this serious look on his face as in remembrance of what happened. “Also, what am I supposed to call you?"

"Spéir or North. Whatever you can pronounce easier."

"Why Spéir?" Gilbert didn't completely butcher the pronunciation.

"Name I was born with," Spéir said, shrugging, "I know England is Arthur, America is Alfred, and Canada is Matthew. And you are Gilbert."

"Not too bad. How about France?"

Spéir had to think for a moment for that one. He had overheard Matthew say the name… "Francis, right. His name sounds like his nation." They passed a building, in which was the meeting place. Spéir grabbed Gilbert's shoulder. "This is it."

They walked inside. The aura of the place was in a state of slight chaos. It looked neat and orderly enough, but it wasn't the state of the room that Spéir saw first. At the far end of the room, Raisa and Kevin were at each other's necks, figuratively speaking because their fellow band members were holding them back. The two of them were still millimeters away from each other's faces.

"Kevin, leave her alone."

"Not until she apologizes."

"Is eagle-boy feeling threatened by me?"

Kevin growled.

"This reminds me of our own world meetings," Gilbert stated quietly to Spéir.

"It's like the cold war all over again," Spéir muttered, trying not to laugh. He had seen countless of times Alfred and Ivan getting into each other’s faces in a similar fashion. If Allistor was around, the two of them would make bets as to how the situation would pan out.

"We all knew this was coming for a while," said a girl nearby. Spéir and Gilbert looked to their left and saw a girl with short, messy, light brown hair. She looked entertained, but concerned with the situation. "I take it you two are the ones with the job offer."

Spéir nodded. "Yes, I am Spéir, but everyone calls me North. And this is Gilbert. He's the one planning the party."

"One of them. I'm in charge of entertainment."

"Cool." They all continued looking at the situation. "Usually, we do work together well. But those two for the past few weeks have been getting at each other's necks. I had been suspecting sexual tension. Now, if we had Trollian culture, I would just paint this off as a Kissmesiss. It would make things easier, giving it a name."

Both nations looked at each other, confused.

"Forget it," the girl said, waving a hand. She looked over at the group at the far end of the room. "Hey!" she shouted, "Both of you idiots, get a grip. We have guests."

The group looked over in that general direction. No one said anything for a moment, except for Kevin who said, "Shit" and was instantly hit in the back of the head by Taylor.

Spéir smiled and waved a hand. "Nice to see you all again. Though, I haven't met you yet."

"I'm Kate."

"Nice to meet you then, Kate," Spéir said as he shook Kate's hand. The group calmed down a bit.

"Anyway, everyone, this is Gilbert!"

Everyone looked at Gilbert. He had a giant grin on his face that was so typical of the guy. It made Spéir feel a bit better, knowing that whatever Gilbert was going through, it hadn't completely taken a hold of his life.

One by one, everyone introduced themselves.

"So, now that we all know each other, let's hear what you can do."

Gilbert and Spéir took seats. "Have you done more with Sota's song?" Spéir asked excitedly.

"Course we did!" Gennarino said, with as much enthusiasm. "Can we do that one then?"

Sota looked worried.

"Artist to a fault. We'll do that one after," Gretel said, stepping up for Sota, "Most of what we do is just covers of different songs."

"But, there is a twist," Chloe said, winking.

Jose hooked up his guitar and tuned it up quickly before starting the song.

Kevin (English): I am a question to the world

Not an answer to he heard

Or a moment that's held in your arms

And what

Do you think you'd ever say

I won't listen anyway

You don't know me

And I'll never be what you want

Me to be

Chloé (French): Viens, il existe un nouveau monde

Où la lune est toujours blonde

Et les étoiles restent allumées

Ne crois pas tout ce qu'on raconte

Ce qu'on peut lire dans les contes

Si tu veux voir la liberté

Raisa (Russian): Ja ostajus' samim soboj,

Jetot mir on tol'ko moj

E kak zhit' mne, reshaju lish' ja.

Da, nelegko menja ponjat',

Tol'ko kak e kem mne stat',

Mne podskazhet zhizn' moja.

Gennarino (Italian): Non è stato facile perché

Nessun altro, a parte me

Ha creduto però ora so

Che tu Vedi quel che vedo io

Il tuo mondo è come il mio

E hai guardto

Nell'uomo che sono e sarò

Martina (Spanish): Què sabràn del mal y el bein

Yo no soy lo què ven

Todo un mundo durmiendo y yo sigo soñando porque

Sus palabras susurran mentiras què nunca creerè

Y yo solo quiero ser real

Y sentir el mundo igual que los otros

Por ellos, por mi!

Porquè yo tendría que cambiar

Nadie màs lo va a intentar

Estoy solo, y sigo aquí.

Kevin (English): I'm the one, 'cause I'm still here

Chloe (French): Enfin libre

Gennarino (Italian): Ci sono anch'io

Applause was had all the way around. "That was awesome," Gilbert said.

Officially, they had the Gilbert seal of approval.

* * *

 

**(Later, in the Evening)**

Victoria and Jose waited on the steps of the National Gallery for Gilbert and Spéir. "We should have gone with them," Jose stated. Victoria and Jose stayed behind and helped out with clean up after their little show for the two nations, even though there wasn't much to be done in the first place.

"Yeah, you're right…" Victoria admitted.

Jose looked at Victoria with a confused look. "Did you…?"

"Yes. Believe it or not, I can admit when I'm wrong."

"Well, admittedly, you aren't Arthur," Spéir's voice came from behind, making both Jose and Victoria jump.

"How did you do that?"

"Growing up with my brothers does that." Spéir said with a smile. Gilbert was laughing his ass off.

"You should have seen your faces."

"I feel like I'm back home," Jose stated.

"Brother?" Victoria asked.

"Sister," Jose confirmed.

"So, I was wondering if you would take a song request," Gilbert said after calming down a bit.

"Sure. What is it?"

"Don't laugh, but it's called 'A Thousand Years'."

"A love song?" Victoria asked.

"Ja, it's for my brother and his unofficial boyfriend."

"So you guys can date?" Jose asked, turning to Spéir.

Spéir shrugged. "We can still love and stuff. It's just a different kind of relationship than what you people have."

Gilbert looked at Spéir, then at the two students, then once again back at Spéir. "Wait, they know about…?"

Spéir nodded.

"So who's your brother?" Victoria asked.

"His name is Ludwig. His boyfriend is Feliciano." After a few moments when the two students still had blank faces, Gilbert added in, "Germany and Italy respectfully."

"Maldición!" Jose exclaimed looking away.

Gilbert raised an eyebrow. "What…?"

"Ignore him," Victoria said, rolling her eyes. "So a love song for the two of them. Why? Was this their hook up song?"

"Nein, this song more just explains their situation. I don't think there is any one simple way of explaining it."

"I've heard that the beginning is a very good place to start," Victoria said, grinning at the fact she made a reference to a very good musical.

Gilbert looked at Spéir, who just shrugged. "Well, the two of them knew each other when they were younger. Everyone swore, including me that Feliciano was a girl and Ludwig was known as a different nation: the Holy Roman Empire. They played with each other all the time in those days. Anyway, one day, Ludwig went off to war and "died"."

"He obviously didn't die."

"No, but his nation still did. He did become Germany sometime after, but his memories of being Holy Roman Empire faded away to a point in which he forgot. And Feliciano was told to forget about Ludwig. Fast forward to… not that long ago… they find each other again and now they are in love. But neither of them know that the other is their childhood best friend."

"Ok… when you say childhood best friend, do you mean that they were in love?"

Gilbert laughed, then looked at everyone else's faces. "Mein Gott, you're all serious about this. No, I do mean... well, I don't know about West, but... Feliciano did love him. "

"Sounds like something from a soap opera,” Victoria commented.

"I'm not done. Feliciano doesn't want to be in an actual relationship with Ludwig, because he still feels attached to the Holy Roman Empire."

"Who is…" Victoria made the connection about the root of the problem. "Oh my god, it is a soap opera."

"Let me guess, you want to get them hooked up at this party," Jose said.

"That's right. I have a plan for that, but that's for me to carry out. All I ask is that you play the song."

"Consider it done." Jose said enthusiastically.

"Do we get to know what this plan will include?" Victoria asked.

"Later, when I finish the details of it."

Victoria nodded slowly. Gilbert's secret plan… well, she had no idea of the details for it, but she was getting a bad vibe about how this was going to be carried out. 'Maybe it's just because I have no idea who Feliciano and Ludwig are as people. But if they are anything like Gennarino and Gretel, this plan is going to crash and burn.'

That reminded Victoria. "So, you aren't Germany... which nation are you?"

Gilbert actually looked sad upon hearing the question. "He's..." Spéir started to say. He looked over at Gilbert, "Oh, how do you put it? The Great and Awesome Prussia!" Spéir did a heroic pose.

Jose looked confused, but Victoria knew that name well enough from her history classes. "No way! But how...?"

"Am I still here?" Gilbert finished, "I'm still figuring that one out."

"I'm sorry” Victoria apologized, “I didn't realize it was a touchy subject."

Gilbert gave her a kind smile. "You didn't know. I'm glad that someone still knows of my nation."

"I study history. How can I not?"

* * *

 

**(A Few Days Later)**

Chloé stood on millennium bridge looking out at the river. The sun was setting on the horizon, giving the sky a brilliant shade of red. The cool air played on her face.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" a voice said next to her.

Chloé turned to find a blond haired man, standing next to her. He wore a tan jacket with matching pants, a purple undershirt, and a scarf.

"Yes... I've always loved the sunsets."

They stand there looking out at the city scenery for a few moments. "I am Francis, by the way."

"Chloé."

"So... what is a beautiful woman such as yourself doing alone?"

"Enjoying herself," Chloé said with a smile, "I take the most pleasure in enjoying the sights of the world."

"So you travel?"

"Yes, I'm actually going to Switzerland soon."

"How funny. I'm going over there as well with a friend of mine..." the man looked at both ends of the bridge.

"Are you and your friend meeting here?"

"Oui, if he got my message. He had the nerve to give me a fake number when he got a new phone, so I had to tell him through email."

"Sounds as if he's giving you a message."

"It isn't anything new for him, believe me. I'll get him back for it." He looked down at the river. "I might push him into the river."

Chloé’s face fell to a panicked look. "He'll drown!"

"No, he'll just be pissed at me and very wet. It would take a lot more than me pushing him into a river for him to drown."

"But the currents...” she remembered that Victoria was talking about the dangers the Thames River presented to people and the city. “It isn't safe for anyone to swim in it." It was one of the first things Victoria told Chloé about the Thames.

"He was a pirate once; the sea moves at his command." Francis made a grand gesture like a conductor would when conducting for a band looking ahead in the direction of Tower Bridge. Then he turned back to Chloé and gave an amused smile, "Or so he tells that story."

Chloé couldn't help but smile a little; if they weren't talking about pushing someone off a bridge, she would have laughed. With the way the guy said that, it made it sound like his friend was some kind of charlatan. 'Is this for real?' she thought.

"Speaking of who," Francis said, motioning his head to the end of the bridge closest to the Globe Theater, "Here comes the swashbuckler now."

Walking in their direction was a messy, blond with really thick eyebrows. He wore a black shirt with a scarf that had the colors of the Union Jack, something that Chloé had not seen for some time, since the dissolution of the United Kingdom. "I've told you. I haven't been a pirate for a few..." he stopped talking when he saw Chloé. "Hello," he said awkwardly, like he had no idea what else to say. He looked nothing like a charlatan, not with a face as innocent as what this guy had on his face at that moment.

"I should be going," Chloé said and she headed back home, at least what she could call temporary home as she was studying out in London. As she walked away, though, she heard a giant splash. She turned around; a lot of people were looking at the river. Chloé ran to the bank. After a few moments, someone came out of the river. It was the friend. He was soaking wet, but that wasn't what bothered him.

"Are you alright?" Chloé said, running up to him.

The friend coughed, spraying water out of his mouth. No doubt he swallowed it when he first landed in the river. "Fine, just fine..." he muttered under his breath. Once he caught his breath again, he turned his attention back to the bridge where Francis was. Chloé couldn't see his face at all from that distance, but she had a slight feeling he was grinning. "What the bloody hell was that for!?"

"You gave me a fake number."

"That gives you no bloody right to throw me in the Thames!" The friend shouted angrily back.

"The river wanted a hug." Francis had this innocent, but all the same devilish, look on his face.

The guy took off running toward the bridge. Chloé didn't move; she waited to see what would happen once the friend got up to the bridge again. The first thing that happened was that he started strangling Francis. Chloé couldn't say she blamed him. She'd be pretty upset too... if she lived to tell the tale. 'Just how did you survive that fall?' Then, the friend stopped when Francis pointed down to Chloé. They walked off, together. Chloé knew that men had weird relationships, but this was on a completely different level.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun note: Gilbert did understand what Jose remarked after saying who Germany was. The reason he asked what was because he was confused as to why he would say that. I figured that since he's friends with Antonio, he would know a few things in Spanish.  
> Also under the fun note section, the whole bridge scene happened by accident... at least the part where Arthur gets thrown off the bridge (I think I've implied enough that it's Arthur). I was brainstorming as to what Francis could do with Arthur when they finally met up and... well, as you have read, it all spiraled down from there. This is not the end of Arthur's adventures of being thrown into the water either.  
> And lastly, cookies to those who caught the Homestuck reference.


	4. Chapter 4

"Can countries date?" Jose wondered out loud. Victoria was in the room, but Taylor was as well.

Victoria gave a warning look to Jose, who then realized that they weren’t alone; Taylor meanwhile gave it some thought. "Well, America and England have a special relationship... or at least had one. That could count as dating on a national level, yes?"

Victoria stared a bit dumbfounded at Taylor for a moment before writing a note to herself concerning questions for Arthur.

"It sounds like you think about that kind of thing a lot," Jose said, amused.

"Not really," Taylor said, shrugging, "Sometimes Tumblr can get a bit weird. Not that I go on it often, but a friend of mine sends me highlights of some of the topics discussed. One was America and Britain... shipped." Taylor had this slightly guilty look on her face as she realized how ridiculous is must sound to people outside of the Tumblr community.

Victoria and Jose looked slightly confused. "Shipped meaning...?" Jose asked.

Taylor symbolized kissing with her hands.

'Oh my God,' Victoria thought stunned for a second. She could not see that happen for the life of her between Arthur and Alfred. "How would that even work?" Victoria asked once she got over her shock, sitting down next to Taylor, "Nations these giant land masses." She just wanted to see how Taylor saw the situation. Victoria already had an image stuck in her mind of Arthur and Alfred looking at each other with googly eyes and it was scaring her a bit.

Jose snorted, "Yeah, sure," he said quietly.

Taylor shrugged, "Even if they aren't physical, there's a certain picture you get when you talk about a country. Like, for instance, England, I imagine a tea obsessed individual who is highly intellectual and enjoys poetry. You just take all the stereotypes and put them in a person."

'That's more or less accurate,' Victoria thought as she asked, "Was that the only thing talked about on that subject?"

"No, there was another one talking about the sexual tension between America and Russia during the Cold War."

Victoria stood up. "Nope, not hearing that. I'm heading out."

"But they were at war with each other?" Jose commented, leaning in toward Taylor.

"To dwindle everything down, the best argument of all was the nukes. Like, 'My nukes are bigger than your nukes,' conversation, if you know what I mean."

Jose laughed hard at that.

"But tell me, why bring it up?" Taylor asked.

"Oh, it was something Gilbert told me and Victoria about and it got me thinking about that."

"I only ask because it sounded like something Kate would bring up, not you."

"What can I say?" Jose said, smiling mischievously, "I am full of surprises."

* * *

The band had a secret rule concerning Gennarino and Gretel. It was simple: never leave the two of them together in a small room alone. If there was even one other person there, that was enough so that the two of them wouldn't start getting at each other's throats. Not that Gennarino was the one who would start the hostility, but he was the one to usually start any argument between the two of them. Gretel would too, she isn't completely innocent in this relationship. No one could explain the hostility.

Gennarino entered the room and realized that Gretel was the only one there, reading a book, curled up in blankets. He closed the door.

"So, you are done with finals?"

Gretel looked up, studied Gennarino for a moment, then nodded and went back to her book. Gennarino sat down across from Gretel. "So… Switzerland. Have you ever been there?" Gilbert told the group that the party was going to be in Switzerland. He would supply the tickets to get over there, so the group didn't have to worry about fares.

"Many times. I have family there."

"Right… Switzerland and Germany boarder each other…"

Gretel put her book down. "Have you ever been there?" she asked, trying to sound polite.

"No. I have only seen pictures. It looks beautiful."

"It is…" Gretel sighed, "It will be good going there."

"Homesick?"

"No,” Gretel said quickly, “Why would you say that?"

Gennarino put his hands up in defense. "Mi dispiace."

"It is just… I have never been away from my homeland for so long."

"That is called being homesick. There is no shame in it."

Gretel glared at Gennarino, "So says you," she muttered.

"Don't be like that. Loosen up."

"That again?" Gretel said, her voice rising, "Can't you accept that it isn't in my nature to do so?"

Before Gennarino could say anything else, the door opened and Jose came running in. "Three days! We go in three days!"

"The tickets came in?" Gennarino asked excitedly.

"They did just now. I actually cannot believe this is happening."

"Why?"

"I have never been to Switzerland before."

"You better read up then," Gretel said, closing her book and going into a different room.

"What happened?" Jose asked.

"Nothing." Gennarino said. He looked at where Gretel ran off to.

"Come on. Something always happens when the two of you are in a room alone together. Last time you two were at each other's necks. Literally."

Gennarino didn't want to think about that. Both of them were irritated at the other (he forgot why, it was something incredibly stupid) and by the time someone intervened, they were wrestling with each other. He never meant for things to ever escalate to that point, but he always ended up saying the wrong things. 'And I'm supposed to be a people expert,' he thought exasperatedly. "We are just very different people. We can get along with each other sometimes." Though, if Jose hadn't come in when he did, things probably would have ended up badly... again.

Jose had this knowing smirk, which Gennarino thought was a bit uncalled for.

"No," Gennarino said in a questioning confusion, "We do not like each other in that way. At least I do not. And I cannot see Gretel show affection in that kind of way."

Jose shrugged. "You said it, not me."

Gennarino felt kinda helpless and wished he could just shove his head in a box.

* * *

The band got together a day before they left for Switzerland. "So, out of the list we have of what we can do, what are we actually going to do?" Kate asked.

Victoria and Jose glanced at each other. Kate was starting to get a bit tired of the two of them giving each other these constant looks, like they knew something the rest of them didn't.

"We don't know what kind of equipment we'll have to work with over there," Victoria said, "We should wait until we see what kind of area we have before making any decisions."

"I agree," Valentina said.

Everyone turned to look at her. Out of everyone in the group, Valentina was the quietest. She rarely spoke, instead letting her instruments do the talking for her. So whenever she spoke, everyone listened.

"Well, that settles that," Kate said, "So who's bringing what? I take it Val is bringing her violin and Jose is bring his guitar."

Valentina nodded and Jose said, "Of course."

"Gilbert said that they had a drum set over there as well as speakers for electric guitars," Victoria said.

"Cool. I'll bring my bass then!" Kevin said enthusiastically.

"And I'll bring my electric guitar," Taylor joined in.

"Should I still bring my percussion as well?" Martina asked.

"Yes," Sota answered, "There might be a drum set, but your instruments are different."

"That's all the important things. No doubt they'll have a keyboard over there. So… meeting adjourned?"

Everyone agreed. "Anyone want to hit up a pub?" Kevin asked. Most nodded and they discussed on the particulars for that.

Kate turned to Victoria, "Can I talk with you?"

They went into a different room. "I can't help but feel you know something that the rest of us don't."

Victoria raised an eyebrow, "What gives you that impression?"

"You and Jose keep looking at each other like you two are having a private conversation."

"Then that's our business." Victoria looked very defensive, which was a bit unlike her. True, there were times she needed a break from the craziness of the group, but this was different.

"You keep doing that with meeting we've had since Gilbert first called. What's going on?" No, Kate wasn't going to let it go so easily.

"…it's nothing important,” was all Victoria said.

Kate was still unconvinced. "Really? Is that the best you've got?"

"It's the truth."

"Bull." Kate said, looking unimpressed.

Victoria sighed. "Look, I can't tell you. It's a secret."

That immediately let Kate know that it was something important. "But it has something to do with this group, doesn't it? You have to tell."

"No. I promised I wouldn't. I am honor bound."

"Give me a hint. Something."

Victoria sighed. "Fine. It has to do with something concerning Gilbert, Spéir, and Arthur all share in common."

Kate raised an eyebrow. She had heard Victoria talk about her history friend before, a guy who had abandonment issues apparently. "What does Arthur have anything to do with Gilbert?"

Victoria shook her head. "I gave you your hint. That's all you are getting from me." She turned to leave, but ended up bumping into the short bookshelf. There was a globe on the edge of bookshelf, which fell off. Victoria caught it in midair.

"Nice reflexes," Kate commented.

"Most people would do the same..." Victoria trailed off, looking at a spot on the globe, "This is an old globe."

"Not really. I got it only a few years ago."

"Funny... Prussia's on here. Gilbert would be happy about that."

Kate raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

Victoria pause like she just realized what she just said. "Nevermind," she quickly stated and left the room.

Kate walked over to the globe. The guy who sold it to her said that it wasn't accurate and that is was printed by mistake. She never really looked at it either; she just got it because she thought it looked cool. 'What the hell is Prussia anyway?' she thought spinning the globe around on its axis.

* * *

Valentina found Kate a little later looking at a tablet with a confused face on. The American was lying on the couch, her back leaning against on the arm rest of the couch. "What's going on?" Valentina asked, looking over Kate's shoulder. She had a wiki page up with a bunch of different maps and paintings with words explaining their importance.

Kate looked up in distress and sat up. "Have you heard of a country called "Prussia"?"

The Austrian sat down on the couch next to Kate as the American turned off her tablet. "Yes, only from stories though. The nation was ripped of that title after World War II. Why do you ask?"

"It was something Victoria accidentally said. Something about the nation being connected with Gilbert, which is weird considering the nation died in World War II."

"No, you misunderstood me," Valentina corrected, "The nation didn't die."

"But it was dissolved; that's what it said in the wiki?"

"Kate, either the internet lies or doesn't know what it is talking about. The nation was dissolved, but do not equate that with death. Repeat after me: Prussia was stripped of the title."

"Prussia was stripped of the title."

Valentina nodded approvingly.

"So then what happened to the nation?"

"H... it became East Germany during the time Germany was divided."

"So what about now?"

"It is fading from memory. You had no idea what Prussia was, most people who do not study European history don't. It is not of present relevance anymore."

"Then what about you? You don't study history."

"No, but I know European history better than you," Valentina pointed out. Kate was not impressed by the general expression on her face. "My violin tutor told me stories about different nations," the Austrian explained, "Mostly those of Hungary and Prussia."

"Was he a history teacher too then?"

"No, he just knew about history better than most people." Valentina smiled mysteriously.


	5. Chapter 5

A train ride from England to Switzerland doesn't happen in one stretch. You take a train from St. Pancreas, which is where the international trains are, and you go to Paris. From there, you change trains for one heading to Switzerland. The group was on the second part of this journey. And Kevin was already bored. He was not used to long rides (how he survived the plane trip from New York to London was anyone's guess) seeing as anywhere further than two hours was considered not worth it.

"So… who's got any fun stories?" Kevin asked.

"Like what?" Victoria asked, not looking up from his book.

"Anything. Even something like that one haunted house up in York. Seriously, that was some creepy shit."

Victoria rolled her eyes. The story Kevin was referring to was about this house close to York Minster, where apparently the spirit of a girl who died from starvation rather than the illness that affected her family was still at.

"Yeah, you can do that. We don't have ghosts in America because we deal with our…"

"Shut it," Kate cut him off, "There are ghosts in the states."

"What?" Kevin's eyes grew wide. Apparently ghost stories were fun until they happen in your own country too.

"In the older houses, yeah. My house had a ghost. It liked opening and closing my closet door. It was annoying."

"…remind me to never go to your house."

Kate smiled condescendingly, "Don't tell me you're scared of ghosts."

Kevin stayed silent.

"Whatever. You're still going to visit me one of these days. You promised."

"Besides, ghosts aren't that scary," Victoria added in, "Not benevolent ghosts like the one that Kate has at least." Victoria grinned, "Now if it was a ghost like the one up in York, that is a different story."

Kevin looked at his other companions for help. "…someone please change the subject please."

"I have a story," Chloé said.

"Thank you," Kevin said in an exasperated manner.

"It happened not too long ago. Someone got pushed into the Thames."

"What?!" Victoria put down her notebook in shock.

"Yeah, I was there as well."

"Why wasn't this on the news?" Victoria asked in surprise, "I would think people would be talking about something like that happening."

Chloé shrugged. "I think everyone there was just shocked that it happened."

"So, what happened?" Martina asked.

"I was talking with someone on Millennium bridge, and his friend came along and he pushed his friend into the river."

"The f-ck?" Kevin said.

"Why?" Martina asked.

"That is actually the weird bit," Chloé confessed, "The friend… he gave a fake number to the guy..."

"I'm with Kevin on this one," Raisa said, "How did that guy survive the fall?"

"He's an ex-pirate?" Chloé suggested as she shrugged her shoulders.

Victoria raised an eyebrow. "Ex-pirate?"

"It's something that the man on the bridge, Francis, said. His friend was a pirate and that… how did he put it… the seas obey his command." Chloé mimicked the motion Francis did on the bridge.

The group laughed a bit at that, except Victoria. She went back to her notebook.

"You're joking. He actually said that?" Gennarino asked.

Chloé nodded. "I still think he was joking about that."

"But that fact that he said that is the best thing I have heard in a long time," Kevin said.

"Do you know the name of pirate man?" Raisa said.

"No. I didn't get his name. But if I see him ever again, I will ask."

"Thank you," Raisa said, then added, "Anyone known as pirate at one point in time is worth knowing about."

* * *

Gilbert paced at the station, waiting for the train to arrive. Tino was with him, though he was sitting down, watching Gilbert. He found it funny how someone as confident as Gilbert could be so nervous about something so small as greeting students.

"Why are you so worried?"

"I'm not. I just don't like sitting down."

"Right. ADHD?"

"Noooo, I just like moving around."

"Sealand does the same thing."

"Yeah, well." Gilbert sat down. "Has he chosen a name yet?"

"I haven't explained to him yet about that."

"You'll need to soon."

"It's hard explaining things to him. Berwald has an easier time with that. He's more patient with him."

"I can see that in Berwald, but you being impatient?"

"Aha, wrong word, I guess…"

They sat there in silence for a bit, then Gilbert stood up again and paced.

"Are you sure you aren't worried about something?" Tino asked, concerned.

"I am, but it's not about the kids."

"Then what is it?"

Gilbert stopped walking. "It's Ludwig, actually," he said slowly, "He told me something that I'm still trying to figure out."

"And what was that?"

"That I wasn't going to disappear on his watch."

Tino was told about Gilbert's situation beforehand. "That's…" he started to say, thinking exactly why Ludwig would say that. But as he thought about it he realized why Gilbert was having a hard time, "Oh…" False confidence wasn't Ludwig's thing.

"You see now?"

"Yes… maybe he found a way to make sure you don't disappear."

"That's impossible."

"I don't think so."

The train from Paris pulled up at that moment. "Why don't you just ask Ludwig yourself what he meant? Communication is key to any relationship. I learned that the hard way."

"Why's that?"

Tino grinned. "Berwald is a man of few words," was all he said on that subject.

* * *

 

Once the kids got off the train, Gilbert and Tino lead them over to the hall they were going to be using for the party. Kate ended up walking in step with Gilbert, talking to him.

"What do you study?" Gilbert eventually asked.

"Linguistics. Currently, I'm learning Japanese, which is a bit difficult considering it has a different mindset than what I am used to."

"And what do you mean by that?"

"Well, the reason that there are some words that cannot be translated is that the language is in a different mindset. The Eskimos have like 50 different words for snow because their life is revolved around that."

"Huh, I never thought about it like that."

"Don't you work with people from all over the world?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I understand all their native languages. We only use one to communicate."

"Really?"

"Ja."

"What language is it?"

"Ah," Gilbert glanced back at Tino for a moment before saying, "It's not exactly an official language. We just use it because it's easy to learn and makes meetings go by easier. It doesn't have an official name."

"What does it sound like then?"

"It's hard to explain…"

"That's alright. People look at me weird whenever I ask anyway. There's a certain sound languages have. There are times I just like listening to someone talking in a language because I like the sound of it."

"Even your own?"

"Only if it's poetry."

* * *

 

**Meanwhile, conversation with Tino**

"This is a beautiful place," Taylor remarked.

"You should see the mountains," Tino said, "My family and I come here for skiing."

"Mine does as well,” Chloé said, “We go to Grindelwald."

"Me too."

Both Tino and Chloé smiled excitedly. "I wonder if we ever saw each other before." Chloé mused.

"Maybe..." Tino looked carefully at Chloé, "Tell me, were you there three years ago?"

"Yes."

"Do you remember if anyone did something completely stupid?"

Chloé thought about it. "Yes, actually, there was a guy who ran into me on his way down the hill. We ended up getting lost in the forest."

"What was his name?"

Again, Chloé had to think about it for a moment. "Mathias."

Tino nodded in assurement. "That would be my cousin."

"He's a daredevil." Chloé commented.

"That's what gets him in trouble most of the time," Tino admitted, "He's coming as well, though not for a few days."

"So we get a few days of peace before some chaos," Taylor stated.

"Not really. Most people I work with have a rhapsodic personality."

"That must make work difficult," Chloé said.

"You have no idea. Even when we are talking about serious things, somehow we always get way off topic. It annoys Ludwig to no end."

"And he is...?"

"Oh, he's our representative for Germany. He's one of the only people who can run a meeting properly."

"Even you?"

Tino smiled and shrugged, "I'm too kind for my own good sometimes."

* * *

 

They reached the building and headed inside. They went through the side entrance which led directly to the open area where the stage was located. It was kinda bare, but then again, it was hard to decorate a giant hall.

"Over the week, we're going to be putting up the awesome decorations Tino picked out," Gilbert explained.

"We are making a few though," Tino reminded him.

"Right, but it still goes along with the theme. We'll show you guys that tomorrow."

"Do we get to help out with the decorations," Taylor asked.

"If you want," Tino said, "The more help the better."

"Especially since most people won't becoming until later,” Gilbert pointed out.

Gennarino hopped onto the stage. There, set up, was a drum set as promised, as well as an electric keyboard. "This is good. I like this."

"The stage is yours to work with and practice on. Though, we meet up in here in the afternoons."

"So we can practice in the mornings," Kate said, "Not a problem."

"Not too early though," Kevin stated warningly, "I like my sleep thank you."

Kate silently sneered at Kevin.

"Will we be able to leave our instruments here?" Martina asked.

"Yes. This building will be locked up at night. And we have it to ourselves until the party is over."

"That's lucky," Kate said.

"No, it just depends on who you ask," Gilbert said with a wink, "We have awesome connections."

Victoria mouthed, "Right," to herself, and looked around the room. There was a table at the other end of the hall with about 12 chairs at it. "Who is here already?"

"Let's see, there's me and Gilbert, Felik and Lili. Then... Feliciano and Gilbert, and of course Basch. This is his country after all."

"Don't you have to go get Berwald?" Gilbert asked as he counted who was already in the town in his head.

Tino glanced at his watch. "You're right. Kiitos. I'll be back later." With that, Tino ran out.

"He's picking up some people from the train station," Gilbert explained, "So."

"Where are we staying?"

"Right. There are a few flats/apartments that I got set up for you. If you want, I can take you over there and show you those."

Before anyone else could say another word, the doors burst open, and an auburn haired individual came flying in and hugged Gilbert. "So this is where you've been at. I've been looking all over the place for you."

"I thought I told you I was picking up the students."

"Oh... I guess that's why Ludwig wasn't worried about you."

Gilbert fluffed up the newcomer's hair. "Everyone, this is Feliciano." Gilbert winked over in Victoria and Jose's direction.

"Ciao, everyone!" Feliciano waved.

"Now, why were you looking for me?"

"Well..." Feliciano brought his voice low, "Because of the thing."

"What thing?" Gilbert said, looking genuinely confused.

Feliciano went into a long rant that no one except Gilbert could understand. Gilbert had a sad look on his face once Feliciano was done.

"Feli, relax. I am here. Now," Gilbert turned back to the band, "Do you want to go over to the flats now?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As a warning, this chapter does have a mention of a normal, biological process that many people can be uncomfortable with. Read on with caution if you don't like the mention of periods.

"I've always liked your human name," Feliciano said as he spun around in the spinny chair that was in the flat that Ludwig, Gilbert, and eventually Austria and Hungary were going to be sharing. Ludwig had been finishing up some paperwork for his boss; Feliciano was avoiding his, as usual.

Ludwig walked over to Feliciano's chair and stopped the spinning. "You're going to get dizzy doing that," he said simply.

Feliciano didn't respond for a moment as his mind was trying to straighten itself again. He grabbed onto the closest stable thing he could get his hands on, which happened to be Ludwig's arms. The Italian looked up again at Ludwig once he got his bearings again. "It sounds like you."

"What does?"

"Ludwig. It's a serious name, but it is also fun to say!"

The German smiled kindly. "I guess you are right. I never really thought about it too much."

"Yeah, you never even gave yourself a last name." Feliciano looked expectantly at Ludwig.

"What?" Ludwig asked after a few moments of silence.

"Why don't you give yourself one now?"

Ludwig blushed at this, which surprised Feliciano. It wasn't the normal kind of blushing that Feliciano was used to Ludwig doing; this was a hard blush what would have had sound effect had the scene been drawn for manga. "I…" Words seemed to fail Ludwig. He kept stuttering trying to get the word out of his mouth.

The door opened and Gilbert came in. Feliciano and Ludwig turned to look at him.

"Feli, you're still here?" Gilbert said, "Not that I'm not happy to see you," he added quickly.

"Si, well, I'm the only one at my place right now. Lovino isn't coming until tomorrow. And I don't like being alone for long…"

"You can stay here," Ludwig said simply, “Roderich and Elizabeta don't come for another few days."

"Thank you, Ludwig," Feliciano said, smiling.

Ludwig smiled back in a way that Gilbert had never seen his brother smile before. It looked like an expression that came right out of a Disney movie.

* * *

 

"West?" Gilbert asked Ludwig later, when the two of them were alone. Feliciano went to his apartment to get a few things, mostly a change of clothes.

"Ja, Bruder?"

"Did something happen between you and Feli?"

"Nein, why do you ask?"

"Well, I don't know if you know this, but people who are in love smile in a different way."

Ludwig did not comment.

"So something did happen."

"Nein, nothing happened. I just… remembered him… from before…"

Gilbert sat down next to Ludwig and looked into his eyes. "You remembered?"

"Ja," was all Ludwig could say to that.

"Do you remember me?" Gilbert asked.

Ludwig nodded.

Gilbert smiled relieved. At last, his brother remembered. "Why the long face then? You should be happy, right?"

Ludwig sighed. "Bruder, I need to tell Feli."

"Well, ja. So?"

"I don't know how." Ludwig looked very lost.

Internally, Gilbert was starting to freak out a bit. Once again, his master plan was falling to pieces by the hands of his younger brother. Externally, he looked completely unfazed. "Don't worry about it. Why rush?"

"Because I feel guilty. He had been waiting for me, and yet I was right there next to him all this time."

"First word of awesomely big brother advice…"

"I didn't ask for advice."

"Too bad, you're getting it anyway. First thing: don't rush. You have to think. You have to be in his shoes for a little bit before talking to him about it. Second: be yourself. No book in the world can tell you how to present yourself to a friend or in this case, soulmate."

"Soulmate?"

"Ja, soulmate. You two always return to each other, no matter what had happened in the past. And nothing you say is going to convince me otherwise."

"Danke."

"Hey! What are awesome big brothers for?" Gilbert said, punching Ludwig gently on the shoulder. 'And once again, you jeopardize my awesome plan. Damn it.'

* * *

 

Alfred's biological clock was completely screwed from all the travel he had been doing over the past month or so. He was over in England, helping Arthur heal from his overdose. Then they went over to Poland for the usual meeting of nations. Then Alfred went back home for a week (home being in Washington D. C.) then he was called to go over to Illinois (which is in a different time zone, mind you) because of trouble over there. Not that there was much he could do. It was mainly keeping an eye on Lucille and Richard since recently the two of them were neck on neck... more than usual. It was almost like dealing with John and Abigail, except for the fact that Abigail was a wild spirit who could not be tamed easily. Then he had to go to Boston (said hi to Abigail in the process) and took a plane over to Switzerland, which was what he was currently doing.

"You're quiet," Matthew commented. He had his magic notebook in his hand.

"Just a lot of crap going on in my land."

"So I've heard. The internet spreads like wildfire."

"I just feel lost in what I'm supposed to do."

Matthew looked thoughtful for a moment. "I think that's reflecting on your people"

"Really?"

Matthew nodded, "Molly tells me about this stuff."

Alfred looked down at his hands for a moment. "Something going to happen. It has to."

Matthew smiled and went back to his book.

"How have you been doing with the magic stuff?" Alfred asked slowly. While the two of them were over with England, it was discovered that Matthew could do magic. Since then, Dylan had been teaching Matthew the ways of magic, though most of it was Matthew just practicing. Alfred was having a hard time trying to get used to magic. Arthur kept telling Alfred that the American used to be able to do magic as well, which Alfred kept rejecting the idea. He would have remembered something, right?

"Not too bad," Matthew admitted, "I'm getting used to the spells in here. Making spells on the other hand is a different matter."

"Making them?"

"Yeah. That's how new spells are created. Dylan was trying to explain how to do this… but I'm not good with it at all."

"Maybe it isn't your thing then… making spells that is."

Matthew nodded.

Alfred felt inside his jacket pocket for the small notebook that he got from Britannia. He hadn't looked in it at all, but he kept it with him at all times. He didn't really know why. Heritage? No, he cut off all ties from Arthur, he cared not for heritage. Or at least that's what he kept telling himself.

The American closed his eyes and threw his head back. His tension seemed to evaporate into the air around him and he could feel himself nodding off.

_He could hear his phone ringing, but he refused to answer it._

_"Come on, Alfred, pick up. Please."_

Alfred snapped open his eyes and sat up. 'What the hell was that?' he thought to himself.

"Something wrong?" Matthew asked. He had his tablet out, with a stylus in hand like he was using it for handwriting. The Canadian looked into Alfred's eyes, staring at them as if he couldn't believe what he saw.

"Did you hear that?" Alfred asked, trying to get a handle on his senses.

"Hear what?" Matthew asked carefully.

Alfred felt for his phone, which wasn't in his jacket pocket as he thought, but on the table in front of him. He picked up the phone and pressed the button to turn on the screen, but it didn't turn on.

"You turned that off for the flight, remember?" Matthew said with an eyebrow raised.

"Must have been dreaming then," Alfred muttered. But… he could have sworn he heard Lucille's voice right next to him.

* * *

 

Lucille was in a state of distress when she had first trying getting in contact with Alfred. While, true, she probably would have had better luck getting in touch with one of her brothers or sisters, Alfred had been helping her out the past few weeks and told her specifically to call him if something came up. As it so turned out, Alfred wasn't picking up... as usual. Now she had been planning on giving Alfred an earful when he did finally get back to her. But in reality, she broke down when she heard his voice say, "Yo, Ill, what's up?"

"Where the hell were you when I called you?" she asked, trying not to sound like she was sobbing (which was what she was doing).

"Relax, I was on a plane to Switzerland. I thought I told you about that. What happened?"

"Richard." True, she had been dealing with him for a long time, but recently it had been getting worse, especially once Alfred left for Massachusetts.

"Ill, you're just going to have to…"

"Alfred, I don't know how much more of his crap I can take. Every single thing I say, he says is wrong and shoves it back in my face and I am getting sick of it." Be called an idiot enough, you kinda start to believe it without someone saying otherwise.

Lucille heard Alfred sigh on the other end. "What do you want me to do about it? And actually answer that for me this time, because I can't help you until I know."

The Midwest state slowly sat down on the ground, then proceeded to lie on the ground and curl up in a ball. She tried not to moan or make any awkward sounds, even though she wanted to in a vain attempt to make herself feel better.

"Ill, are you still there?" Alfred asked, concerned.

"Yes," she said quietly. She felt completely awful.

"Something else wrong?"

"I'll be okay."

"If you are sure of that... Yeah, Matt, I know," Alfred said on the other side away from the phone, "Give me a moment here."

"Look, Al," Lucille moaned, "If you have to go, go."

"No, I'm not done. Talk to Matt." Lucille heard the phone being shuffled around and the words, "It's one of the states," being said.

"I'm sorry," Matthew's voice said. "He didn't even tell me which one you are."

"Illinois."

"And how are you doing?"

"…awful."

"Did Alfred just call you or…"

"No, I called him. He was just calling me back. I guess I called while he was on a plane."

"Around 3 hours ago, yes?"

Lucille took the phone away from her ear out of confusion. "How did you know that?"

"Lucky guess."

Lucille highly doubted it, but she didn't want to ask more. If she didn't feel like her body was killing her inside out, she would have asked for more.

"Are you alright? You keep moaning."

"No…" And now she was starting to feel a tad bit nauseous. 'Why is it so bad this time around?' she wondered vaguely, 'It's usually not this bad?'

"Well, here Alfred's back. Take care of yourself, ok?" The phone was shuffled again.

"So, seriously, what can I do for you?"

"…can you skype me later?"

"That it?"

"…for now. I just need to talk to you."

"Good enough for me. I'll call you when Matt and I get to the apartment, ok?"

"Ok." Lucille hung up the phone and just stayed there, curled up and wanting to just disappear for a while. Eventually (when she felt like she could move without throwing up her insides), she did get up and grabbed a couple of Advil, which she took along with water.

The door opened and Richard's face popped into the room. "So this is where you ran off to," he stated dully, "I've been looking for you everywhere."

Lucille closed her eyes and found the strength needed to stand her ground. "I don't want to talk to you. Get out."

"But…"

"No." Lucille pushed the personification out of her room and slammed the door in his face.

"We have things that need to get discussed," Richard said through the door.

Lucille felt a renewed strength surge through her as she said, "More like you yelling at my face again. No, I am at my limit right now, and I don't think you want to die, so can we put it off to tomorrow?"

"These are important affairs."

Lucille didn't really want to tell him what was going on, but apparently, she had to. She opened the door and stared directly at him. "I am in agony right now. Being yelled at by you is only going to push me past my breaking point. And I don't think our boss would like it if either on of us was injured on account of a brawl. So kindly leave me alone."

"If you're in that much agony, go see a doctor."

"Do I really have to spell it out for you?" Lucille said in disbelief. She had forgotten that guys didn't understand subtext.

Richard raised an eyebrow of confusion.

That meant a yes. "I'm menstruating, and it's worse than usual. I'll be fine by tomorrow, so leave me alone until then."

Richard's mouth dropped in surprise. "I thought you couldn't do that?"

"I can prove it to you if you want."

"No, that won't be necessary," Richard said, grimacing at that statement.

"Good," Lucille said and she slammed the door in Richard's face again. 'That actually felt really good,' the state thought as she curled up on the bed and stared at her laptop screen, waiting for Alfred to call again.

* * *

 

Arthur was waiting for Alfred and Matthew (Matthew called him earlier, saying they were coming to Switzerland that day) when Francis showed up.

"So, are you feeling better?" the Frenchman asked.

Arthur glared at Francis, and threw water at the Frenchman's face.

"I take that as a no," Francis stated casually.

"How the bloody hell does giving you a fake number warrant throwing me off a bridge?"

"Angeleterre," Francis tisked, shaking his head, "When are you going to let it go?"

Arthur just stared at Francis with a murderous look on his face. If it weren't for Alfred and Matthew, he would have tried strangling Francis again.

"You know… It's been a while since we've been together," Francis said. Arthur blinked at this. "The four of us, alone."

Arthur looked at Francis confused. "And what exactly brought that on?"

"Arthur, let's be honest: it's a lonely life for us nations. This is why we have to stick together."

Francis had always been more open about his feelings than Arthur ever could be. He agreed with it; it could be lonely, not wanting your heart constantly being torn in two because of humans dying. That was why, for the most part, the nations didn't make a lot for human friends. But recently, Arthur had been learning that friends, human or nation, were actually important. All thanks to Victoria.

There was a knock on the door. Arthur walked over and opened it; standing there were Alfred and Matthew. "Sorry it took us so long," Matthew said, hugging Arthur.

"I had to call someone back and it took longer than expected," Alfred explained.

"Who?" Arthur asked, a bit confused.

"Lucille."

Arthur nodded. He remembered that each of Alfred's states had a personification. He actually completely forgot about that until recently, when he was reminded of how the American War of Independence all got started: namely, the personification of Massachusetts set all hell loose (metaphorically speaking, of course).

"We also got a bit lost coming here," Matthew said.

"We didn't get lost," Alfred said defiantly, "I just took you on the scenic route."

Arthur highly doubted that, but didn't comment on it.

"Mathieu!" Francis said, giving the Canadian a hug. "It has been too long."

"Hi, Papa," Matthew said quietly.

While the French-speaking countries, Arthur stared at Alfred. "Did you get taller?"

"Nah, dude, you just got shorter," Alfred said, sticking out his tongue.

"I did no such thing!"

Alfred just smiled annoyingly, which irritated Arthur, but at the same time he was glad the American was there. Truth be told, he missed Alfred.

After showing the boys to their part of the flat, Arthur ended up back in the kitchen with a mug of tea in his hands. Alfred had to go call Lucille again (Arthur had asked him what was going on and all Alfred said was that it was personal business) and Matthew looked utterly exhausted so just collapsed in bed. It felt… comfortable, having the younger nations there. He couldn't pin-point how, he didn't have the words for it.

Francis came up behind Arthur, which scared the ever-loving shit out of him.

"The bloody hell?" Arthur said, pushing himself out of Francis grasp. "No bloody please first?"

"Oh, and would you actually say yes?"

"Maybe," Arthur huffed, "You have no chance of that now."

"I'll keep that in mind for next time."

Francis got himself some of the leftover tea from what Arthur just brewed and stood next to the Englishman. If anyone on the outside was looking in at this scene, they would have thought that this was a home of a happy and dysfunctional family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who are Lucille, Richard, John, Abigale, and Susan? Lucille is Illinois (I gave her more of a French sounding name after doing some research); her given nickname is Ill (short for Illinois). Richard is Chicago. Yes, Chicago is a personification in this little AU. After being with people from both the Chicago area and the rest of Illinois, there is a difference between the two. John is New York. Abigale is Massachusetts. Molly is Maine.  
> Do women nations actually get a cycle? The answer is yes; Hungary talked about it a bit with Prussia when they were younger (even though Prussia had no idea what Hungary was talking about). I was trying to find the episode in question, but I couldn't find it. If anyone knows what episode I'm talking about, please let me know which one it was because now it's just annoying me.


	7. Chapter 7

"What are we doing for song choice?" Sota asked once after practice was over for the day. It was mainly getting used to the performance area (aka, the stage). Highlight was Kevin and Gennarino started dancing on stage, which set in stone that there would be dancing and movement with the songs they would be doing (not just with the two of them, but everyone in general).

"We could just do the usual stuff," Taylor stated, "That's what they asked us for, eh?"

"Except there is a song request," Jose perked up. When everyone else gave him a questioning look, the Spaniard said, "A Thousand Years."

"That's easy to add in," Martina said, "What's the occasion for the request, if there is one?"

Jose moved so that he was right next to Martina. He put an arm around her shoulder and said in a dramatic voice, "A tragic love story, one that will hopefully come to a close at the party."

"With who?"

Victoria walked over to the edge of the stage and sat down. Sota noticed. Usually, Victoria was all over love stories (he came to realize that after her grand speech about _Pride and Prejudice_ ). Something was going on, but he also knew her for long enough to know that she would not speak unless she wanted to on any topic.

Sota joined Victoria at the edge of the stage, bringing along a pad of paper. "You never got to finish that song," he said. He knew that Victoria knew what he was talking about. A while ago, he asked her to write a song about her country. She entertained the idea for a bit, but then school work got in the way. That was what she said at any rate.

"Do you still want me to finish it?"

Sota nodded. "Yes, I do. Once you have the words, I can put music to it. But only you can write the words, because you are the only one from that area of the world."

"…you do know that I am actually from Wales."

"That is why I said area of the world," Sota pointed out, "But if you were to say where you connected with the most, wouldn't you say England?"

Victoria didn't answer. "Just saying," she said after a while, "Don't expect anything great."

"Thank you." Sota stood up and was going to walk away.

"Hey, Sota?"

The Japanese student turned around.

"Are you going to perform this time?"

Sota just kinda froze for a moment. He would write songs, mix music, and give good pointers about how to do songs. But when it came to preforming, he always froze up. Sota shook his head, not wanting to speak. Victoria always asked him that same question with every performance they did. And every time, Sota gave her the same answer.

"We still have some time before then," Victoria said, "If you change your mind, let me know."

"Thank you, but I don't think I could ever be ready to perform in front of people. It is not me."

* * *

 

"Ok, so there's Feliciano," Martina said.

"Yes," Jose confirmed (not that he really needed to). After telling who the estranged love birds were, Martina and Gennarino wanted to see what the pair looked like together. Not that they wouldn't help anyway, but they wanted to see what they were supporting. "I like him."

"So, where is Ludwig?" Gennarino asked, looking around the room. There were only a few other people there, not counting the band.

"I have no idea," Jose shrugged, "I never met the guy."

Feliciano looked over at the trio and walked over. "How were the apartments? I hope they were alright?"

"Oh, they are fine," Martina said.

"Good, I'm glad. You three look like you are looking for someone."

"Yeah," Gennarino said, "Where's your…"

Jose pushed Gennarino off his chair before the Italian student said anymore. Feliciano gave a surprised and confused look. "We're looking for Ludwig."

"He'll be here in a moment." Feliciano pulled up a chair. "Why do you ask?"

"We want to meet him," Gennarino said simply.

"Why? I mean, he's a great guy, but he has this reputation of being very soldier like that people are kinda scared of. Even I am a bit scared of him sometimes."

"But you like him," Martina pointed out, "So what is his good side like?"

"That's easy. He has a sweet side and can be a bit awkward at times when showing emotion, but he tries and I give him credit for that."

"Any moment in particular?" Gennarino asked.

"Yes…” Feliciano said slowly, “But it is really weird."

The trio's ears were wide open.

"So, a while ago, he asked me out to dinner. And he kinda, I think, proposed to me."

"What?" the three of them asked simultaneously.

Feliciano smiled embarrassedly and blushed a bit. "It kinda came out of nowhere and it was just really weird. Later, I found out he was seeking dating advise from this really funny book. Elizabeta and I got a good laugh from it later."

"You weren't dating before then?" Martina asked.

"No. As I said, it was weird."

The doors opened and a messy haired blond walked in. "That's Arthur."

"He looks pissed," Jose pointed out.

"Yeah… he's like that a lot,” Feliciano explained.

The doors opened again and a man in a fantastic purple cloak came in. "And that's Francis." Feliciano waved.

Francis smiled kindly, walked over, messed with Feliciano's hair, then went over to where Arthur was at, which was at the table at the end. Victoria was over there, as well as a guy in a winter coat and a scarf.

"Who is the person with the scarf?" Gennarino asked.

"Oh, that's Ivan,” Feliciano said, “He can be really scary."

Gennarino gave a sideways look at Ivan. "He doesn't look that bad."

"From here, si," Feliciano agreed, "But he is really intimidating when he's right on top of you. Matthew can tell you that himself; Ivan keeps sitting on him at meetings."

"Really?" Martina said in credulously.

Feliciano nodded. The doors opened again and two people came in. One was Gilbert, while the other was…

"Ludwig!" Feliciano called out. He ran up to the person in question and gave him a hug.

The trio of students looked carefully at Ludwig. He had strait cut blond hair and sky-blue eyes. He definitely had the whole soldier look to him and looked intimidating. But he had kind eyes, especially when looking at Feliciano.

"I don't know about you two, but that is cute," Martina said to Gennarino and Jose, "The way they look at each other…"

"Yeah…" Jose said absentmindedly. He took into account the story Gilbert told him and Victoria. If he wasn't told about it, he would have thought they were already a couple.

"So, I see no problem helping them out,” Martina said.

"Except I can't work with Gretel," Gennarino stated.

"It's not like we are asking you to do much. Just dance for one song. That cannot be too hard."

"I wish," Gennarino rolled his eyes and looked away from Jose.

Feliciano came back over to the group, Ludwig right behind him. "What's wrong?" Feliciano asked, looking at Gennarino's face.

"He's just having a rough day," Jose said, standing up, "And I know how to fix that. Come with me." Jose took Gennarino's hand, grabbed his guitar and the two of them left the building.

"Where are they going?" Feliciano wondered out loud.

"Wherever it is, I hope they don't get into trouble," Martina stated.

"Do they do that often?"

"No, but they make me nervous when they are alone. Anyway, this is Ludwig?"

"Si," Feliciano said, positively beaming.

"My name is Martina," the Chilean said, extending a hand.

Ludwig took it. He had a firm grip, which didn't surprise the girl at all. She expected nothing less.

"You are one of the members of the band?" Ludwig asked.

Martina nodded. "I sing and play percussion."

"So the drum set?" Feliciano asked excitedly.

"Sometimes. I usually use my own percussion."

"Can we see?"

Martina nodded and went to grab a cabasa. "This is used in my country. It has a traditional sound. Almost like the sound of rain." She slowly moved the beads around. The sound of it sounded like pouring rain.

Feliciano had a smile on his face; obviously he was enjoying the sound of it. Ludwig was enjoying it to, but his focus was more on the look on Feliciano's face than the instrument in Martina's hand. After some time, Feliciano looked at Ludwig with a similar beaming of love.

If there were still any doubts Martina had about this pairing, they had just been cast away.

* * *

 

Victoria sat at a table in the hall with the pad of paper Sota gave to her in front of her. She twirled a pencil in between her fingers. Poetry wasn't a strong suit of hers (which for some reason always surprised the Americans), so she found herself wondering why she was doing this in the first place. 'Write a song he says. It shouldn't be too hard he says. I don't study English writing I say. My statement still stands, he says.' Victoria put the pen down in sudden realization: 'I'm making this more dramatic than it should be.'

Arthur came in looking extremely put off. And then he noticed Victoria. He walked over to her and sat in the chair across from her. "What are you doing here? I thought you had a job offer."

"I did and we got it. Who knew we'd be talking about the same party?" Victoria wasn't at all surprised to see Arthur, considering that he was a nation as well. "Something happen?" Victoria asked seeing Arthur's expression.

"It's the goddamn frog," he grumbled.

"And by "frog" you mean…"

"Moi!" a voice said and in came a man with shoulder length blond hair and a fashionable purple cloak. "Though my name is Francis. Arthur keeps forgetting that is my name." Francis joined them at the table. "I was just telling him that he should go as what he went in on April Fool's Day."

"And I cannot believe you would even think that I'd agree to that," Arthur said indignantly, "My boss is coming to this as well and I'm not about to look like a fool."

"What exactly happened on April Fool's, if it isn't too much to ask?"

Arthur shot an angry look at Victoria, then softened and took out a photo. "This was what I mentioned about before. Antonio wanted all of us to get together and so ask Francis here to do the honors. Except he decided to take compromising photos of us and use it as blackmail."

Victoria tried hard not to laugh at the photo. Talk about a world picture. Everyone was in some kind of ridiculous costume of one kind or another. Most were in some kind of dress. "Was this the compromising photo?"

"No…" Arthur said bitterly.

"I could have done worse, and you know it," Francis said smirking. "By the way," the Frenchman turned to student at the table, "What is your name?"

"Victoria."

Francis looked thoughtful for a moment. "May I be so bold to ask, but did you have a test a few weeks ago?"

Victoria blinked. "Don't tell me, you were the one who had the wrong number?"

"Indeed. Truly it is a small world out there."

Arthur sat there frozen.

"So I can guess that you were the idiot friend who gave Francis the wrong number as a joke?" Victoria asked, turning to Arthur. She had an eyebrow raised.

Arthur didn't reply. He just kinda sat there looking very guilty of his crime.

"Oh, that's right," Francis smirked. He reached over to Arthur in prep to slap him. Victoria grabbed Francis' arm. If it were anyone else, Victoria would have let Francis do it, but not to Arthur. To her, Arthur was a delicate person.

"Please, don't," she said, trying to think of some other reason for him to hold his hand, "You're already in enough trouble with him."

"That's normal for the two of them," a new voice said, "I've learned to just let them be and enjoy the fun from it."

Victoria turned around and came face to face with a grey-blond individual in a beige overcoat and a thick scarf. He smiled innocently. She was reminded of a child who just broke a window.

Both Arthur and Francis ended their bickering at once and sat in their seats properly. "This is Ivan," Arthur said, introducing the new comer. "He's Russia."

"Oh, so you must be one of the people who knows about us nations then?" Ivan asked, "Gilbert mentioned something about that."

Victoria nodded, "That's right."

"What did you think about it when you first heard? I've always wondered about that. It used to be that more people knew about us, at least in the army."

"What happened?"

"Times changed," Arthur said solemnly, "We figured it would be best that the less people knew about us, the better it would be for everyone."

Victoria nodded. "To say the least, I was a bit shocked. But considering I knew Arthur a bit before finding out, it answered more questions than it created." Ever since she found out, she actually had better conversations with Arthur. He didn't need to hide as much, and she asked more informed question. Not just about certain situations, but how either Arthur or other nations felt about it.

Victoria looked down at her work. Something clicked within her. She knew how to finish the song. That was interrupted by Feliciano shouting, "Ludwig!" at what seemed to be at the top of his lungs, completely startling her.

"I didn't think he could be so loud," Victoria commented.

"That is actually nothing," Francis said, "He can project his voice very well. He has spoken to crowds of thousands with no need for a microphone. Mostly because there was no such device when he first learned."

Ivan looked at what Victoria was working on in silence. He didn't ask any questions, but he just looked on, which felt kind of intimidating.

Chloé came over to the table, but stopped when she got a better look at the other occupants there. "You're the one who fell off the bridge."

"Pushed would be more accurate, but yes." Arthur looked very surprised at Chloé. "We were never properly introduced. I am Arthur."

"…these were the two you saw the other day?"

Chloé nodded.

"And that's why it never appeared on the news," Victoria commented, shaking her head. Then she just burst out laughing.

"What?" Arthur asked out of concern.

Victoria shook her head, not being able to say anything. Arthur looked over at Chloé who, just shrugged in confusion.

"Sorry… I've just been looking at you and Francis in the wrong way."

"How so?"

Victoria waved a hand. "I forgot who you are sometimes."

"And that changes things because…"

Victoria wrote a few things down. "History between people changes how you view relationships," was all she said. "Which reminds me, I have a few questions for you for later."

"You can just ask me now," Arthur said rolling his eyes.

Victoria glanced over at Chloé, and looked down at her notebook for a moment. She had to be clever at how she worded her questions. "Alright... give me your personal opinion on the "special relationship" between England and America."

Francis burst out laughing while Ivan chuckled quietly. It was obvious that Arthur was very annoyed, but because it was Victoria asking he kept his mouth shut. "That is a difficult subject," he said through gritted teeth.

"Yes, well, it came to my attention that your opinion on the matter would be an interesting perspective concerning your occupation."

This of course made Francis laughed even harder. Chloé leaned over to Victoria, "I feel like I'm missing something."

"You and I both," Victoria said back.

"It's just… it's not something that can be easily explained."

Just then, the doors burst open and in came in Alfred himself, in a bomber jacket. All he really needed was a pair of shades and he would have looked like the popular kid in school.

"Hey, aren't you that girl who was lost that rainy day?" Alfred asked when he got up to the table.

"Yes. Maybe you can answer this question."

"No," Arthur said firmly, looking at Alfred with a hard parental look.

Alfred gave a confused look. "Dude, I can answer questions. No need to protect me like a little kid."

Taylor came over. "Chloé, want to come exploring with me?"

"I thought you would never ask. Victoria?"

Victoria shook her head. "Another time." Chloé and Taylor left; Victoria turned back to Alfred. "What do you have to say about your special relationship with Arthur?"

Alfred looked absolutely confused for a moment, then he realized what Victoria meant. "Oh, that," Alfred said, "Dude, we're just best buddies."

"And nothing more than that?"

"Good God no," Arthur said, "I don't think I could handle any more than that."

"You're family, though," Victoria pointed out.

"Yes," Arthur said, his teeth still a bit gritted, but not from anger, "That is implied already. Our special relationship was coined by one of his bosses, not between us, I can assure you. What brought this up in the first place?"

"Feliciano and Ludwig."

"Ah, yes, the two love birds," Francis said, with renewed interest.

"Can you guys date?" Victoria asked bluntly at Francis, who seemed to be a more willing canidate to answer questions.

"Ah, that is a hard question," Francis said, "While we will never be like you humans, we do have personal interest. But the matters of our nations come first."

"So yes?"

Francis nodded.

"Is there a problem?" Arthur asked.

"No, I'm just trying to understand you guys."

"Come on," Alfred said, putting an arm around Victoria, "We aren't that hard to understand."

"Yes, actually, you are," Victoria stated, looking up at Alfred, "There are different rules between you guys than between humans."

Arthur nodded, "Things can get very complicated easily. But it is easier knowing history, isn't it?"

Victoria shook her head, "No, it's not. It's just weird translating it to human terms."

Francis actually grinned at this, "Now that would be a bit odd. I think it would be better for you not to do that. It would make your life easier, no?"

* * *

 

Jose and Gennarino were outside on the street, guitar case open and playing songs for the passersby. Some people had stayed around to actually listen, which made them both happy. It was nice to know that people thought they were good. Better than what a few coins would tell.

There was one passerby who walked by with the grouchiest looking face that Jose had ever seen. "Hey, smile, señor. The sun is still out!" Jose called out to this person.

"Don't tell me what to do," the guy said. He sounded almost as though he were hissing.

Jose didn't back off, even though he knew he probably should. "If you have no place to be, stay a while. I can promise I can get you to smile."

"You sound so sure of that," the guy said in a sarcastic tone.

"Because my counterpart and I have the voices of angels." A few of the bystanders supported the claim.

"Mh," the guy said angrily and started to walk away.

"One song, señor. If I can get you to smile with one song, you must dance with us."

"And if I don't…"

"We'll stop for the rest of the day."

Some people objected to this. "Fine," the guy said and came back. He went into the back of the crowd.

"You aren't getting away that easily," Gennarino said, taking the guy's hand and pulling him to the front.

Jose handed Gennarino the guitar. "Vivir mi vida," Jose told Gennarino.

Gennarino nodded, and tuned the guitar before starting to play.

At one point in the song, the guy smiles, like he was remembering something. Jose grinned widely, but continued the song. Some of the other people saw, and called it out, which made the guy blush, and scowl.

"Now," Jose said after finishing the song, "You must dance with us."

"Tch, fine."

Jose and Gennarino switched places. "Danzare," Gennarino said. Jose adjusted the guitar as Gennarino pulled the grumpy guy over next to him.

"Don't worry if you cannot dance; just follow me as best you can."

"I can dance," the guy grumbled, which Jose almost laughed at.

Gennarino gave Jose a signal to start, and Jose started to play the music. Gennarino got the crowd to clap along to the music, and they actually stayed relatively in beat.

The guy was actually a pretty good dancer. He just needed to be pushed a little bit. Once it was over, the crowd clapped loudly. The guy glared at the two students. "Be glad there are other people here," he said dangerously

Gennarino smiled brightly. "We are."

The guy rolled his eyes and walked away. Jose let out a sigh of relief. At least they didn't have to see that guy ever again.

"Too bad he doesn't like dancing," Jose commented, "He's very good at it."

* * *

 

Chloé and Taylor were sitting at a fountain when a little kid ran up to that area. He was dressed in a sailor's outfit and had a grin on his face. He turned around and was saying something in a language neither of the girls recognized, but stopped when he realized he was alone. The boy looked scared, but pulled out his mobile phone. After a few moments, the boy put away his phone and sat down at the edge of the fountain.

The girls looked at each other for a moment. Taylor stood up and walked over to the boy. "Are you alright?" she asked, hoping the kid knew English.

The boy looked up. "I'm lost," he said in a heavy English accent, "And my mobile died out on me."

Taylor took out her phone. "Would you like to use mine? Or do you not have your parents' numbers memorized?"

The boy looked down to the side.

"Right. Here, why don't you come with me and my friend and we can charge that phone up. How does that sound?"

"Really?"

"Yeah. We don't want you being lost forever. What's your name?"

"I'm Sealand."

Taylor was about to ask, but thought better at that moment. They went to the place they were staying at and the boy plugged his phone in. Taylor looked up Sealand, because she knew she had heard that word before. Indeed, she found several articles about an abandoned sea base that was an unofficial nation.

'Why the hell would a kid say he's a country?' she thought, 'A five year old, fine. They have crazy imaginations. But he's twelve… at least he looks twelve.'

Once his phone turned on again, the boy immediately called his caretaker. After some time, he looked over to Taylor. "What's this address?"

Taylor told him the address, which was waylaid to the phone. When he finished the call, he sat down and looked like he was going to cry.

"So, your parents coming?" Taylor asked.

The boy nodded. His eyes were glossy.

Unsure of what else to do, Taylor asked, "Do you want to watch _The Lion King_ while we wait?"

The boy's eyes lit up. Disney for the win.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As an explanation as to Arthur's flustered mannerisms had nothing to do with how he feels about Alfred; it was him remembering certain actions from certain bosses of his and Alfred's who would ship the two of them. This is based off of a theory from Skully (this post in particular - http://sully-s.tumblr.com/image/114395375630).


	8. Chapter 8

Kevin, Martina, Kate, and Valentina stayed for a while at the party hall.

"We got to have more party songs," Kevin groaned, "Like the stuff that is played at all parties."

"Such as what?" Valentina asked. She had a feeling where this was going, considering it was Kevin bringing it up.

Like "Cotton Eyed Joe. That's a classic!"

"No," Kate said firmly, "Victoria was telling me that the people coming to this are more here for commerce."

"But Gil said that party music was highly suggested. That is the thing to play at parties."

"Let's also remember we are not in America."

"Besides, none of us know who to play that song," Martina perked up.

Valentina smiled to herself. She was reminded of the countless times that her music teacher's friends would come visit during her lessons. The conversations were always chaotic and sounded something like kids arguing over their turn on the swings. Quietly, she got her violin and started playing the tune to "Cotton Eyed Joe". Slowly, Kevin, Kate, and Martina looked over in her direction.

"How do you know how to play that?" Kate asked slowly.

"I learned it in my own time," Valentina explained, "My teacher was not thrilled that I knew how to play it, but was impressed all the same that I learned it from ear."

Kevin's jaw almost dropped; his eyes were wide in surprise. It was almost too easy to impress the American.

"That is impressive that you learned how to play it just from listening to the song," Matthew said, coming over to the group. Valentina forgot that the Canadian was there. She had been told about him before, but her music teacher. He told her that Matthew would often do something similar at meetings; it was something Valentina never really believed until that moment.

"Thank you, Matthew."

"If we are doing that, I want to make a suggestion too," Martina said.

"And what's that?" Kate asked.

"It's called "Djobi Djoba". I think an equivalent would be "Sweet Caroline" from what you've told me of it."

"Jose knows how to play it?"

Martina nodded.

"Let's add it to the list then."

"Oh, yeah, you add that to the list no problem," Kevin grumbled.

Kate sighed, but made no move to defend herself.

"I see no problem with playing both songs," Valentina said, "As long as everyone else is fine with it. We can talk about it tomorrow."

Kevin was still pouting, but he nodded all the same.

* * *

 

Sometime later, there was a knock at the door, which Chloé answered. At the doorway was Tino, looking very concerned.

"Tino, what are you doing here?" Chloé asked, letting him in.

"I'm here for Peter."

"The kid who said he was Sealand?" Chloé guessed. They sat down at the table in the kitchen. They both could hear the song _Hakuna Matata_ being played in the other room.

Tino groaned. "I should have told him earlier. See… Sealand is his actual name. I was hoping to tell him his alias before meeting you guys again. I should have told him yesterday…"

"Sealand is an odd name for a child though."

"But it is his name." He looked at Chloé for a moment, "I guess it's fine to tell you. No doubt you are all going to find out one way or another; you are smart kids. Just please keep it to yourselves." And so Tino explained to Chloé the nation thing.

"So you are one of these personifications?" Chloé asked once Tino’s story was done.

The Finnish man nodded, "As well as everyone else who you have met. All my coworkers."

"And your cousin?"

Tino nodded again.

"Which nation are you then?"

"I am Finland."

Chloé blinked for a moment. "Sorry, but I was expecting someone who looked like a heavy metal band member."

Tino thought about it for a moment, then took out his phone and flipped to a picture. He handed the phone to Chloé. "Does that help?" he asked, smiling slightly.

The picture on there was of Tino in what looked like an orc costume from Lord of the Rings (except this one had really awesome wings). It took Chloé a moment to recognize the costume as the one worn by Lordi during Eurovision in 2006. "Yes, a little bit."

Taylor come into the kitchen. "Tino. Hi, what are you doing here?"

Peter came in as well. He looked a bit ashamed. Tino walked over to Peter and gave him a hug. "Don't do that again. I was worried."

"Sorry, Mum," Peter mumbled softly.

"Mum?" Taylor asked quietly after a few moments.

"Peter's idea," Tino admitted.

"Peter?" the boy asked, looking at Tino with annoyed confusion, "Why Peter? It sounds childish."

"Sad to say, but you are also twelve," Chloé pointed out.

Peter stuck out his tongue. "I'm almost fifty," he muttered under his breath.

* * *

 

Once the two boys were done playing music outside for people, they went back to the party hall. Jose was fooling around with his guitar when he heard some shouting in Italian. He looked over at Gennarino.

"What are they saying?"

Gennarino shook his head, "Something about leaving him alone… but he wasn't… this sounds like sibling bickering."

Jose snorted. "Who knew it could be so poetic?"

"The curse of having a beautiful sounding language. And now they're insulting each other… well, one is. The other sounds a bit offended, and not really into it… oh." There was silence before a voice shouted really loudly and angrily.

"What?"

"No, I'm not repeating that one. It's bad."

"It's an insult, is it not? Of course it's going to be bad."

"Yeah, but the insult was remaining silent."

Jose mouthed, "Oh."

The door opened and Feliciano walked in. He looked annoyed and upset.

"Hey, I'm not done talking to you!" someone else said, a second person who came into the room following Feliciano.

Both Feliciano and the new comer noticed the students. The students also recognized the second person to be the guy they forced to dance. One thought passed through both student's minds at the same time as they looked at each other, "We are screwed."

"You're back," Feliciano said friendly enough, though it was obvious whatever happened outside was still bothering him greatly.

"Yeah," Jose said, "We figured everyone would still be around here, but guess not."

"I think they went to the flats, if they aren't here," Feliciano said. He glanced over at his brother, "Oh, this is my brother, Lovino."

Lovino glared at the students with the death stare of the century.

Feliciano noticed the look his brother was giving to the students. "He can be kinda a dick at times, though," he explained.

"No, um," Gennarino started to say as an explanation, "We did meet before. We, kinda, forced him to dance."

"Really?" Feliciano looked at Lovino in surprised amusement.

"Don't you get any ideas," Lovino told his brother in a dangerous voice.

"But the fact that someone could get you to dance is quite impressive." Feliciano turned to Gennarino and Jose, "What was your secret?" he whispered loudly.

"Don't you dare," Lovino said menacingly.

"Well, for Lovino's sake, I won't give specifics," Jose said, "But... it takes a great deal of faith and determination."

"Oh..." Feliciano looked over at his brother with a playful-evil look in his eyes.

Lovino looked like he could have murdered the two students right there and then.

* * *

 

After Tino left with Peter, Taylor looked something up on the computer. "Ok, so Peter told me that apparently, you can pay to be a lord or lady of Sealand."

"Really?" Chloé asked.

"See for yourself."

Indeed, there was an official webpage and everything. Chloé couldn't help but laugh a little. "But what is Sealand. I have never heard of it before."

"It's just this abandoned sea base that someone claimed," Taylor explained quickly, "What I want to know is if Tino is his mother, who's the dad?"

"The only other person Tino has really talked about it Berwald." Chloé still found it weird that a guy was a mother in a relationship, but she kept that to herself, seeing as she was the only one to be thinking that was weird.

"Alright, Berwald…" Taylor was thinking about something, "We still haven't met him yet, have we?"

Chloé shook her head. She was still trying to get it through her head that there were nation personifications.

"Tell me, what nationality is Tino?"

"Finnish."

"Oh, wow."

"What?"

"I don't know. I was expecting someone who was in a heavy metal band to be the Finnish one." Taylor winked.

"You know?"

"Peter told me. I ask him about Sealand and he was happy to talk about his little nation. It was so cute how he talked about it. It was like he was talking about a painting he made himself... which in a sense it is what it kinda is."

"And you have taken it so well?" Chloé stated with some credulousness.

"Trust me when I say I have heard crazier conversations... and been a part of them too. Personified nations is pretty tame." Taylor then started laughing hard.

"What?"

"Something someone posted once on Tumblr," Taylor said through the giggle burst. Taylor calmed down a bit before singing, "England and America, sitting in a tree. K-i-s-s-i-n-g."

Chloé thought about it for a moment, then realized what Taylor was getting at. The French girl shook her head. "There are times when I question your humor."

"At least I have one," Taylor said, winking again.


	9. Chapter 9

Tino brought Peter to the apartment they were staying at. Berwald was in the kitchen, looking stern but that was his normal face. The face that Tino was once absolutely terrified of, but now have come to adore.

"I found him," Tino said, hugging Berwald from behind.

"Good," Berwald said, looking over at Peter.

The sailor boy looked as though he wanted to disappear.

Berwald stood up, then crouched down to look at Peter in the eyes. "Don't do that again," Berwald said calmly.

Peter nodded and hugged his adopted father. After some time, the two pulled away from the family embrace and Peter looked at Tino. "Which one is my room?"

"It's the second door to the right."

Peter nodded and headed to the door. Though, the moment he stepped out into the hall, he was talked by something. Of course, Peter screamed out in surprise. This made Tino ran out into the hall, where he saw Mathias on the ground holding Peter.

"Uncle Denmark, get off," Peter groaned, not haltingly, just mildly annoyed. He tried to wiggle out of the older nation's grasp.

"Mathias, let him go," Tino said.

"What? I wanted to surprise him. Aren't you surprised?" Mathias started tickling Peter, which of course made Peter laughed.

The sailor nation finally got out of the ex-Viking's grasp and ran into his room.

Tino shook his head.

"Come on, it was all in good fun."

"When did you get in?"

"A few hours ago. Lukas and Emil are here too."

Tino looked back in the kitchen, where Berwald nodded in agreement, and Lukas had appeared with a magic book in his hands.

"So how is the party hall looking?" Mathias asked taking a seat at the table..

"We're getting there," Tino admitted. "But we have a lot of help now with the decorations since everyone is starting to come in."

"And we've got entertained?"

"Yes,” Tino said excitedly, “A student band."

Mathias gave a look of surprise. "Really?"

Tino nodded, "I'll introduce you tomorrow. They are an interesting bunch."

"Can't wait then."

Tino looked around at the table and noticed someone (other than Peter) was missing. "Where's Emil?"

Lukas shrugged. He looked at an empty space next to him and said, "Komme."

Suddenly, Emil appeared, with his bird, looking pissed off. "Why did you do that?"

"Beats having to find you," Lukas said passively.

Emil didn't look at all impressed; he sat there sulking. "You could have just knocked on my door," he mumbled.

Tino looked between Emil and Lukas. The two of them were typically on each other's nerves, but this time it felt different. "Did something happen on the trip?" he asked timidly.

"He's just mad because I beat him in our last mackerel fight."

Emil shifted in his spot uncomfortably. He didn't say a word.

"If you say so…" Tino said, sitting down at the table next to Berwald.

The Swede put a hand on Tino's shoulder, and pulled him close. "Don't worry about it," Berwald said.

* * *

 

"Question time for Victoria," Taylor said, coming up the Welsh girl.

"Yes?" Victoria asked slowly. She picked up her mug of tea and sipped on it a bit

"Spéir's nickname, North. It's because he is Northern Ireland, yes?"

Victoria tried not to spit the tea back out. "How do you know?" she asked once she could talk without spewing tea everywhere.

"I was told."

"By who?"

"This kid we helped today. He's Sealand, and is the most adorable little kid. He likes _The Lion King_."

Victoria looked over the Chloe for help. "Tino has a kid, who is Sealand. His human name is Peter."

"And I take it you were told as well?"

Chloe nodded. "That is why I am not questioning your sanities."

"Well, yes," Victoria said to Taylor, answering her question, "North is Northern Ireland."

"Good. That nickname makes more sense now." Taylor looked pretty pleased with herself. "You want to know what else makes sense?"

"What?"

"The fact that these guys can't lose their jobs for being themselves. Seriously, look at Gilbert."

"Gilbert's a special case," Victoria said cautiously, "He doesn't actually have a job."

"What? Why?" Taylor asked confused.

"He… his nation was dissolved some time ago."

"But…" Taylor looked a bit confused, "Isn't he Germany?"

"No, Germany is his brother, Ludwig. Gilbert is Prussia."

"I was thinking he was Germany and thinking how cool he was…" Taylor thought about it, "Prussia no longer exists as a nation, like no one talks about it anymore. Like it doesn't exist in the world at all."

"No, it doesn't. Which is why he no longer is a representative."

"That would explain why he looks kinda down. I was thinking that was just how he always was… what's his brother like?"

"Someone much more serious from what I have seen and heard from Arthur."

Taylor smiled at the mention of Arthur, then burst out laughing uncontrollably.

"Did I miss something?" Victoria asked. True, she was used to Taylor's odd sense of humor, but this was something out of the blue.

Chloe shook her head, not wanting to explain Taylor's little inside joke.

* * *

 

"Seriously, what is wrong with you today?" Feliciano asked as he and Lovino were walking to the apartment that they were using for this trip.

"It's Antonio," Lovino said annoyed, "Why the hell did you have to go over to potato bastard's place anyway?"

Feliciano put his hand on the prayer beads in his pocket. "I wanted to visit Ludwig."

"Si, and the Holy Empire bastard. Seriously, you should just forget about him."

"Easier said than done, Lovi. I want to. Really, I do."

"But…?" Lovino asked in an annoyed tone.

Feliciano looked at his brother with melancholy eyes. "I can't help but think I could have stopped it."

_Italy sat by the side of a well. It was a beautiful day out. The sun was in the clear blue sky and there was a slight chill in the wind making the day comfortable. Italy has some time off, and so decided to go outside, away from the house. He couldn't stay there. Not that day, for it was the Holy Roman Empire's birthday. Or it would have been if that nation was home._

_Italy knew something bad had happened to the Holy Roman Empire. He could feel it in his heart. Moreover, Austria had been more serious. He had stopped playing on his piano, one of Italy's joys of being in the house. Whenever Austria played, the world around Italy vanished to the melody of the twinkling notes._

_"Ah!" Italy let out. His hands went to his chest. There was a pain there, as if some object had stabbed him. 'Course, there was nothing there. 'What was that?' the young nation thought._

_It would be much later that the Italian found out that on that day, the Holy Roman Empire went missing from the battle field, never to be seen alive again._

Lovino growled but didn't comment further on that.

"So," Feliciano said, changing the subject, "What has Antonio done since I left?"

"Be the most annoying thing on the planet. I swear that coma messed up something in his head."

Just as soon as he finished saying that they turned a corner in which they saw Antonio sitting down on a bench. Though, it was hard to make him out because he was covered in turtles. Lovino just stopped in his tracks, dumbfounded.

"Lovi!" Antonio exclaimed in an excited voice as he got up and ran over to the grumpy Italian, giving him a hug. Of course it hurt like hell because Lovino was pelted by turtle shells, which are hard things to be pelted with. Though, undoubtedly, Lovino would still be just as pissed if they were teddy bears.

"What the f- are you doing, bastiardo? And why the f- are you covered in f-ing turtles again?"

"You know turtles love me." Antonio said, shrugging nonchalantly and smiling that carefree smile he always gave.

"That doesn't mean you have to play turtle whisperer wherever you go," Lovino mumbled. He made no attempt to push Antonio away.

Feliciano smiled and left the two of them alone. He walked back to the flat and went into his room. It felt empty and it made Feliciano fell lonely. He curled up on the bed like a cat and took out the prayer beads. After a few moments of staring at them, he threw the beads at the door and closed his eyes. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't angry.

* * *

 

Around midnight, there was a knock on the door of the flat that Lovino, Antonio, and Feliciano were staying in. Lovino was the one to answer it, grumbling the whole while. He almost slammed the door just as he opened it too; on the other side was Ludwig. The only reason it didn't close in the German's face was because Ludwig caught the door.

"And what the f- do you want this late at night?" Lovino growled.

"I wanted to talk to Feliciano."

"Call him then."

"I have. He won't answer his phone."

Lovino sighed angrily and let the German in. He headed over to Feliciano's room. Of course, Lovino following right behind. Feliciano was curled up on top of the bed, asleep. His phone was on the other side of the room. Ludwig picked something up off the ground; Lovino saw that it was the prayer beads that Feliciano always carried.

"There. He's fine." Lovino said impatiently, making it obvious that he wanted Ludwig gone.

Ludwig looked at the prayer beads for a moment, then looked back at Lovino. "Did something happen?"

"No, nothing happened. And if something did, I didn't do it."

Ludwig gritted his teeth and sighed. "Can I have a moment? Alone?"

"And why should I do that?"

Ludwig held up the prayer beads, "Feliciano wouldn't have these lying about carelessly."

Lovino couldn't argue with that. "Fine. You can let yourself out. I don't want to see your stupid face here in the morning."

Ludwig nodded and closed the door. Lovino huffed annoyed, then went back to his room. 'Stupid, damned potato bastard,' Lovino thought angrily, 'Why the f- did Feliciano fall for him?'

* * *

 

Feliciano woke up at some point in the night feeling the presence of someone else with him in the bed. Feliciano couldn't tell if it was real or not, and he feared to prove that it was all in his mind. So he stayed very still and fell back asleep, feeling safe.

When the morning came again, Feliciano was alone, but the prayer beads were back in his hands. He felt the beads absentmindedly, wondering whether to throw them again or not. He looked at iron cross and clasped it in his fist.


	10. Chapter 10

Victoria pulled Gretel and Gennarino away from the group after practice for the day, into a place in which they could not be over heard. "You two need to cut the crap," she said. Needless to say, Victoria was frustrated with the two of them. Surely, if Arthur and Francis could get their act together for several wars, these two could do the same for a week.

"Why do you even pair us up?" Gretel asked, equally as annoyed, "You know as well as everyone else how we cannot work together. So why try?"

"Because you are German and he is Italian."

"So what?” Gretel asked almost exasperatedly, “What do our nationalities have to do with anything?"

"I see," Gennarino said, knowing what Victoria was getting at... sort of. He heard the story, at least the story Jose told: two lovers who have yet to profess their love towards each other. "But couldn't we get someone else to do it. Why do you want so badly the nationalities to be correct?"

Victoria felt torn. She had said she would keep the personifications a secret, but she also knew that there was no other way to convince these two to co-operate. "It's important for those who are going to watch this. Maybe I could get someone else to do this, but it would mean more coming from you two."

"Why?" Gretel pressed.

Victoria sighed. She did really try to not tell them about the nation personifications, but it looked like in the end she would have to tell them. 'Arthur, forgive me,' she though as she said, "It's a long story…"

* * *

 

Kate ended up staying behind in the party hall, almost alone. The only other person there was Berwald, but he had not said a word to her at all. Tino had said that Berwald couldn't speak English. It didn't faze Kate at all; she just wished she could speak Swedish so she could talk to the guy.

The Swede kept to himself for the most part as Kate practiced music on her own, trying to work out pronunciations of Japanese words.

After a time, Berwald took out a hand-held note pad and wrote something down. When he was finished, he ripped out the sheet and handed it to Kate.

"What's this?" she asked.

Berwald just pointed at the piece of paper. Kate looked down at it and read it: . There were a few words written on it, but they were in a different language. Unsure of what else to do, Kate pulled up her laptop and looked up the first thing worded. "Olet" In Finnish, it meant "are". She looked up the second word, "puolisoni" meaning husband or partner. Kate was starting to get a bit confused.

By that point, Berwald was seeing what Kate was doing. He put a hand on her shoulder and motioned for the laptop. Kate took her hands off the keyboard; Berwald pulled up a video on youtube and turned up the volume.

Kate listened to the song. It was beautiful; she melted at the sound of the words, even though she didn't understand the meaning of most of them. She could feel their meaning, though (even if she couldn't find the words to describe it to anyone else).

When the song was over, Kate turned to Berwald. "Do you want me to sing this for the party?" she asked, trying her best to motion her meaning.

Apparently, her message got through, because Berwald nodded once.

Kate quickly looked up a translation and showed it to Berwald. "Som?" "Who?"

"Ty Tino," Berwald said simply, then followed up with, "Han är min själsfrände."

* * *

 

Lovino did not want to meet up with Ludwig, but the German insisted on them talking. The Italian sat at the bar, mentally grumbling about the whole thing.

Ludwig came in and sat down next to Lovino. After a moment or two of silence, Lovino asked, "So what the f- do you want, potato bastard?"

"I need your help," Ludwig said simply.

"Why couldn't you go to your brother for that? He'd be willing to help you."

"Because you know Feliciano better then anyone."

Lovino scowled. He didn't like the sound as to where this was going. "What is it?"

"How does he actually feel about the Holy Roman Empire?"

Of all the things that Lovino thought Ludwig would ask about, that wasn’t one of them. "Why do you ask?"

"Because I'm going to tell him that…"

"He knows that bastard is dead," Lovino interrupted. 'Seriously, why does he care about that nation anyway?'

"Will you let me finish?” Ludwig sighed for a second, then continued with his thought, “That I am the Holy Roman Empire."

Lovino glared at Ludwig with the death glare of the century (two in two days, new record). "No wonder I never liked your face. Why the hell…"

"Because I didn't remember all of that until recently. If I knew before, I would have told him."

Lovino wanted nothing more than to strangle the man in front of him, but for the sake of his little brother, he kept his feelings in check. "…he won't take it well. He might think he can take it, but he won't." Lovino could only imagine his brother's reaction. His rage started boiling to a point in which he could no longer completely contain it. Without much of any warning, Lovino struck Ludwig hard with the palm of his right hand. It was a hard strike, and he felt his hand sting after contact.

Ludwig didn't say much at first. He looked a bit shocked, but then seemed to accept the slap. "Feel better?" the German asked.

Lovino did feel better, but there was no way in this hell that he was going to admit it. "…don't think this is over… but, yeah."

Ludwig nodded in recognition, "Italy needs to be told."

"But you don't want to tell him flat out unless you have a death wish. Hint at it or something."

"Fine."

Lovino looked at Ludwig; the German looked lost in what he was going to do. Lovino would rather Ludwig just drop it all and not bother Feliciano with any of this. "Don't you dare get the wrong idea. I'm only saying this because it's Veneziano. I don't want to see him cry again, especially not because of you."

Ludwig looked surprised by the fact that Lovino used Feliciano's nation name. After a moment, he nodded, thanked Lovino again, and left. The Italian thought about telling Feliciano about what happened, but decided against it. He knew better than to open old wounds with his brother. There were already too many hours between the two of them crying, yelling, and frustration because of events of the past. This one, he had no obligation to talk about. It wasn't his problem.

* * *

 

Gretel ran her hand in the water of the fountain. She was having a hard time coming to terms about what she had just heard from Victoria. Every nation in the world being personified through one person… it was a crazy story. What was even more crazy was that she on some level accepted it all. Like it all made sense, even though experience would say otherwise.

"Excuse me?" someone said in front of Gretel. The German girl looked up to see a red head with a rough face look down at her. "Mind if I join you?"

"As long as it's just sitting," Gretel said, taking her hand out of the water.

"When I was younger, I was more of a flirt. These days, I'm happier just to see my brother get the shit scared out of him."

Gretel noticed the guy carrying a turtle-like creature which he let into the water. "What is that?"

"Her name is Nessie. She usually stays at home, but I decided to bring her on this trip."

The turtle creature poked her head out of the water and looked at Gretel curiously. "You can pet her, she doesn't bite… hard that is." The stranger winked.

Carefully, Gretel touched the head of the creature. Nessie purred like a cat and seemed to enjoy the feeling.

"It's funny. Most people can't see her."

Gretel looked at the stranger with a questioning look. "It's hard to miss a giant turtle without it's shell."

The stranger laughed. "Do you believe in magic?"

"Not particularly."

"I doubt that."

"Why, is Nessie your magic detector?"

The stranger grinned, “You can say that, but she’s mainly my familiar.”

And that was when it clicked in Gretel's head. "Do you mean to say that is the creature that lives in Loch Ness?"

The stranger continued grinning, "Isn't she adorable?"

To not panic, Gretel commented, "I expected her to be bigger."

The stranger laughed, "Aye, she was once. But then... hold that thought for a moment." The stranger crouched down to hide from sight from the other side of the fountain as Nessie dove under the surface of the water.

"Do I need to move?"

"Nay, just sit there. It shouldn't be long."

Gretel turned and saw Arthur and Francis coming up to the fountain. They noticed her, and Francis waved hello, which Gretel hesitantly returned. She was told that these two were personifications of nations. She looked down into the water and noticed that Nessie was over by Arthur.

"What are you doing out here alone?" Arthur asked.

"Enjoying the day," Gretel said simply. She probably should have said something about the person hiding behind the fountain.

Suddenly, a pebble went flying and hit a flower pot. Arthur, Francis, and Gretel looked in that direction, giving Nessie the perfect opportunity to cause mischief. She grabbed the back of Arthur's shirt and pulled him into the fountain. Arthur let out a yell as he fell back.

The stranger stood up then almost promptly fell back onto the ground from laughing so hard. Arthur was just sitting in the fountain, completely drenched, with Nessie in his lap and a turtle on his head.

"You bloody wanker," Arthur hissed. He looked up at Francis accusingly, "You were a part of this, weren't you?"

"Moi? Not this time. Though, I would love to take some credit for it if you are giving it out."

Arthur tried to get out of the water, but he kept slipping in. In the end, the stranger walked over and pulled Arthur out.

"Allistor, just why?" Arthur asked angrily at the stranger with a look that could murder someone, probably because of the thick eyebrows.

"You need to have a bit more fun in your life, Arty," Allistor said, messing up Arthur's hair.

Something clicked for Gretel. While they may be the representation of an entire nation, they were still human. They had feelings, emotions, awkward interactions within each other. So when saying that Feliciano and Ludwig loved each other, it was saying they as people were in love. So, as long as she didn't think about it too hard, it wasn't all that bad. And that was possibly why Victoria was ok with all of this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translation Note - Ty Tino, han är min själsfrände - For Tino, he is my soulmate


	11. Chapter 11

Taylor, Raisa, and Chloé went back to the party hall after exploring the town a bit. Berwald was still there, and Ivan was there as well. Taylor sat down next to Ivan. He had his jacket off, but the heavy scarf was still on. It was an outdoor scarf, not a fancy indoor one; a bit odd for someone staying indoors.

"Why do you still have your scarf on?" the Canadian asked.

Ivan touched his scarf and chuckled slightly. "I forget I have this on sometimes," he admitted, "It was given to me as a gift by one of my sisters. Since it is always cold out where I am from, I usually don't take it off. It has become a part of me."

"It does look nice. Is it handmade?"

Ivan nodded.

"So then it was made with love. Where are you from?" Taylor asked.

"Russia. And you?"

"Canada."

"Ah, Matvey's place! It's been a while since I've visited there."

"When was the last time you were there?"

Ivan thought about it for a moment. "…I think it was in 2010, for the Olympics."

"That must have been exciting. I wasn't able to go for family reasons."

"It always is. There is always a lot of competition between me and Alfred."

"Oh?"

Ivan nodded, "We get very competitive. There was one time where we were playing hockey. Toris and Francis ended up having to pull us apart in the end. Those were good times."

"How do you two work with each other then?" Chloé asked.

Ivan just smiled. Taylor was reminded of this one girl she was forced to work with once. Long story short, the teacher was glad it was only a week long project.

The doors opened up with a band and Alfred strided into the room, with a confident aura around him. Not that his aura was anything but confident at any given time. He waved a hello to the band members and walked right up to Ivan. "So guess what?"

Ivan had an amused look on his face. "Did you finally figure out that joke I told you earlier?"

"Wha… no. Your joke was dumb, this is about something else. I have my costume ready for the party. And it is the most awesome thing you'll ever see." Alfred looked very proud of himself when he said this.

"And what makes your say that?" Ivan asked. It was a bit less friendly.

"Because it's something from my nation. That's why."

"I meant my joke."

Alfred’s face fell to a frown. "Because it wasn't funny. Why tell a joke that isn't funny?"

"Oh, but it was funny. Because it is true."

Alfred took a moment to respond. "Dude, that's really mean."

Ivan shrugged. "My people find it funny."

"Of course they would," Alfred glared at the Russian.

"His people?" Raisa asked Chloé.

"Yes, the Russians."

"He is the ambassador of Russia?" Raisa asked, her confusion rising.

Chloé nodded.

"I've never heard of him before..." Raisa had a thinking face on.

"Well, representative is a better word for it," Taylor commented.

"Either way, I am surprised I have not heard his name before." Raisa still looked concerned.

"I'm not," Taylor shrugged, "He's kinda a top secret guy that the government doesn't know what to do with most of the time. Although, I think it's more so with Alfred to be honest."

Raisa was completely and utterly lost. But before she could ask anything, Alfred started laughing hysterically. The three band members turned around to see Alfred on the floor, paralyzed by laughter while Ivan looked like he could have killed Alfred there on the spot.

"What happened?" Taylor asked.

Ivan shook his head and muttered, "America likes making fun of my boss, as usual."

* * *

 

Gennarino went back to the entrance hall to find Gretel sitting down at one of the tables, reading over some sheet music. He joined her; neither of them saying a word. There wasn't much of anything that they could say to each other.

Then Gennarino started laughing uncontrollably.

"What?" Gretel asked.

"We, me and Jose, forced the nation of Italy to dance. I cannot believe that is actually a thing."

Gretel actually smiled slightly. "Alright, I'll give you that. How did you even accomplish that?"

"By being our charming selves."

"Of course."

Heracles walked over to the two students. "I saw your practice today. Do you two know how to act?"

The students looked at each other. "We let our feelings get in the way," Gretel eventually admitted.

"That happens a lot in theater," Heracles said, "More than you think." He pulled out two white masks. "This is why working in mask is better."

"Isn't that just hiding your identity?" Gretel said.

Herecles shook his head. "No. It is putting on a different face, and being a different person for a time."

Gennarino took a mask and looked at it. "This would be fine, but… we can't exactly sing with this."

Gretel looked at the mask. While true, they couldn't use it because the mouth was covered, they did need something to remind themselves they are being a different person. Then an idea hit her. She snapped her fingers and ran over to the chest backstage. She came out with two flags: one from Italy, one from Germany. She handed the Italian flag to Gennarino.

"What is this for?" he asked confused.

Gretel unfolded the flag in her hand, then put it around her shoulders like a cape. "This will be our mask."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should probably mention after the incident with Ivan and Alfred, Raisa was explained the whole nation thing. That leaves with Kevin, Sota, Martina, and Kate still in the dark. Also, the jokes are left up to your imaginations.


	12. Foreshadowing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't like naming chapters, but this one felt like it needed it.

Tino was for the most part used to talking to Arthur. The other Celtic nations, however, made Tino a bit nervous (with the exception of Spéir) since their personalities seemed very unapproachable. Yet, he needed a question answered and Arthur told him Dylan could help more with the problem. Taking a deep breath, Tino got the Welshman's attention.

"Dylan, can I get an opinion from you?" Tino asked.

"What's wrong?" Dylan asked after seeing the worried look.

"It's Peter…” Tino said slowly, then added, “I know that magic runs in your family."

This got Dylan’s attention. "He has magic?"

Tino nodded.

"How long have you known?"

"Just yesterday. Peter constantly gets nightmares, but yesterday I saw his eyes glowing. I've seen the same thing with Lucas when he uses magic."

Dylan closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them again, he had on this look of grave seriousness. "Can I talk with Peter? If I think I know what you are asking, it isn't something you can help with."

* * *

 

Dylan found Peter outside of the party hall, playing with a stick. "Peter, we need to talk," the Welshman said.

"I didn't do anything," the youngest nation whined.

"I'm not saying that." Dylan sat Peter down. "Do you ever have dreams that come true? That actually happen?"

Peter looked down, "No but… they get close. There was one time though… I saw my country get burned before it happened. It was worse in the dream though."

"Did it feel different from the other dreams?"

Peter thought about it for a moment. "It felt real. But a lot of my dreams feel real."

Dylan nodded. He often felt that way himself with the dreams laced with his visions. "What did you see last night?"

"I… I was dead. And mum and dad were crying."

"Mum and Dad?" Dylan asked confused.

"Tino and Berwald," the younger nation clarified.

"And this too felt real?"

Peter nodded.

There was something about this that tugged the back of Dylan’s mind. Something menacing. "If you don't mind, I want to try something with magic."

"What is it?"

"I want to see what you saw. I…” Dylan took a breath to think about his thought before continuing, “I will be honest, I've never done this before."

Peter looked scared.

"It's ok. Nothing bad is going to happen. At worst, this doesn't work. Now, I want you to think back to that dream."

Peter closed his eyes. Dylan touched his forehead against Peter's.

"Gweld," he said under his breath. Dylan closed his eyes and opened them again. He was inside the dream. Peter was lying on the ground, stabbed in the chest. But the wound was odd, like he was stabbed by a heated poker. As Peter had said before, Tino and Berwald were crying. Dylan looked around. This scene was in a forest, but not one that belonged in Europe. From the little of America Dylan had seen before, he could have sworn he was in one of America's forests. As to specifically where, he had no clue.

"What happened?" a voice asked, running to the scene. It was a girl, in worn clothing that could be described as futuristic. They were made out of a material that Dylan had never seen before. Though the style of it reminded him of Italy. He then noticed the girl's face. The best description would be Feliciano's and Lovino's faces mixed together and put into a more feminine form. Her eyes were an interesting shade of green and her hair was an auburn color.

This was where Dylan pulled out.

"Did it work?" Peter asked when Dylan didn’t say anything for a few moments.

"Y…yes," Dylan said. That girl… he had seen her before in prior visions, albeit she was much younger in those. "Thank you, Peter. As for dealing with them… I wish there was a better way to work with them."

"You have them too?"

"Yes." Dylan assured the young nation.

"Well, what do you do about them?"

Dylan looked at Peter. When he was that young, he was terrified of what he saw. Brittania always comforted him and said that things would work out. Slowly, Dylan realized he had the power to possibly change what came about in the world. Peter was different, mainly in the sense that his nation wasn't to last. "I take what I see in my dreams and look out for the events to come. Nothing is truly set in stone until it becomes the present."

"But aren't they just dreams?"

"Yes, but some that feel more real, like last night's, are visions of things that might come to pass."

"Something in that spooked you?" Peter for once was acting mature, which surprised Dylan.

"Yes, it did. Between you and me, there's something big that's going to happen. I don't know when, but it's going to be soon."

Peter paled.

"But, it isn't anything you should worry about. I'm used to this sort of thing. Let me deal with it."

"If I see anything else?" Peter asked.

"Tell me. Even if it is just a normal dream, I'll listen. Though your parents do a good job of that already."

Peter smiled and gave Dylan a hug; it made the older nation remember the times he took care of Arthur.


	13. Chapter 13

"Something is bound to go wrong with Gilbert's plan," Taylor stated, "First of all, Feli isn't going to understand."

"So he's got to be told. Someone will tell him later." Chloé said.

"No," Martina said, "Because he deserves to be told what happened. It is a part of his life after all."

"You don't even know his story," Chloé pointed out.

"I know they are star-crossed lovers, separated by circumstance. That is all I need to know."

"So how do you propose to do that?" Victoria pointed out, "Gilbert is adamant on Feli finding out _at the party_. Like he is magically going to understand the whole situation."

Gretel surprisingly spoke up on this, "So, why don't we explain it through song."

"Song?"

"Si," Gennarino said, backing up Gretel. "Music is the best way to explain anything."

Everyone freak out a little on some level. Kevin asked (in a completely serious voice too), "Who are you two and what have you done to the real Gretel and Gennarino?"

Gretel rolled her eyes and Gennarino continued, "Let's turn their story into a musical."

"Will you two be ok with that?"

Gennarino and Gretel nodded. "This is for them," Gennarino said.

"We'll work on it," Gretel said simply.

"As long as you two are sure on that. Just let us know what you want done."

* * *

 

Ludwig joined Martina at the table. He had a pad of paper in his hand, as well as a pencil. He did not write much, and after a while he turned to Martina. "Can I ask you something?"

Martina nodded, unsure of what the question was going to be.

"I'm trying to write a love poem… and I want to know if this line sounds alright."

"Ok? What is the line?"

"'Your eyes are like the color of small potatoes.'"

Martina knew that this guy was being serious but she couldn't help but laugh anyway. "Lo siento."

"Nein, I knew it sounded stupid anyway…"

"Is this for Feliciano?" Martina asked as Ludwig tore the page out and threw it in the nearest waste basket.

"Yes…?"

"I heard that you like him," Martina explained, "What do potatoes mean to you?"

"They are one of my favorite foods… but that description does not do anything with how his eyes look to me."

"Why are you writing a poem for him? I do not find you to be the poetic type."

"I'm not." Ludwig sighed. "I just… I want to tell him how I feel about him."

"Then do something that is more like you. While love poems are nice, if it isn't like you, your message will not get across. Trust me, I know."

"You've been in a position like that before?"

"Once. I was a little child. Everyone would make flower crowns. I was terrible at it, but I tried for this person I liked. In the end, he told me that I shouldn't try so hard to do something that obviously wasn't me. So in the end, I sang for him. That worked a lot better."

"Are you still…?"

"No. But it doesn't matter. I learned to just be me."

Ludwig looked at the page in front of him. "Danke." He stood up.

"So, what are you going to do?"

Ludwig smiled a little. "I'm going to make him a flower crown. When we were younger, he taught me how to make them."

"How cute."

Ludwig's cheeks grew a bit red out of embarrassment and he left the building. Martina got out her mobile phone and texted Gennarino. 'Do you know how to make flower crowns?'

"No, why?'

'We need to make a few… for the song. Feli and Lud make them for each other.'

* * *

 

"You look nice today, Feliciano," Taylor said, "Something special going on?"

"Ve, Ludwig is taking me out on a date, though he keeps telling me it isn't one."

"How can you tell?"

"It's the way he talked about it. He was all flushed up and nervous and he wouldn't be like that if it wasn't a date."

"Well, what exactly did he say?"

Feliciano thought about that for a moment. "There was something he wanted to tell me… and asked me if I wanted to go somewhere with him tonight…" Feliciano looked thoughtful. "His hands were actually shaking… I really hope it isn't something bad."

"I doubt it. Maybe it's just something important to him." Taylor had originally come in with the intention to tell Feliciano about the party, but she backed off. maybe Ludwig would tell Feliciano about the whole thing himself.

Feliciano chuckled slightly, "I hope it goes better than what he did on San Valentino."

"Why, what happened?"

"He... ah, proposed to me, and other embarrassing things. It's kinda funny when I think back to it." He laughed awkwardly.

"Do you like him?"

"What do you mean? He's my best friend. Of course I like him."

Taylor gave Feliciano a look. "I think you know what I mean."

Feliciano sighed. "I do... but I feel like I am betraying my heart for doing so." He glanced over at a clock, "Ah, I should be going. See you tomorrow, Taylor."

As Feliciano leaves, Taylor tried her best to stay quiet. 'They are the same person,' was the one thought going through her head.

* * *

 

Valentina tuned her violin by ear. It was a process that she had trained very hard to be able to do seeing as there were times when she was caught without a proper instrument (like a piano) to tune with.

"I'm impressed you can do that," Alfred commented.

"My teacher showed me how. It takes much practice, but I had the predisposition to do this."

"He must have been a good teacher."

"The best I've had." Valentina finished tuning up and started playing "Dreamed a Dream." At one point, she closed her eyes and let the music flow out. It was like this where she was completely in her element. Though music, all emotion can be let out. Feeling and life.

Once she was done, the people who were around clapped. Valentina opened her eyes. There were more people in the hall, once of which she was surprised to see.

"Roderich?"

Everyone turned to the man in the glasses, looking as proud as he was in his golden days. "Hello again, Valentina."

After carefully putting away her violin, Valentina got off the stage and walked up to Roderich. "I was not expecting to see you, though considering the company, I really shouldn't be."

"And I was not expecting to see you either. More so in my case."

"Wait… you two know each other?" basically everyone in the hall asked at the same time.

"Yes, this is my tutor,” Valentina said simply.

"Was," Roderich corrected her.

"I still consider you my tutor. Unless there is nothing more I can learn from you."

"I didn't know you taught, Roderich," Gilbert commented. There was a grin on his face.

"How about you mind your own business?" Roderich said in the nation tongue. Valentina recognized it immediately, for many times during their sessions, someone (mostly Gilbert) would call and Roderich would give them an earful.

"Val," Kevin asked, coming up to her, "So, this guy was the one who taught you?"

Valentina nodded. "Everything I know about music started with him."

"Why is it that we all have our lives mingled with all these guys?" Kevin wondered out loud.

Valentina grinned, "Fate."

"Oh, please, that's bull."

Valentina shrugged. "What do you think, Arthur?" she asked the Englishman.

"I have nothing to say on that subject. I am not a part of it." After he said that, he fully understood what Valentina asked, "What exactly do you mean by that?"

"I doubt it was coincidence that got you to meet Victoria, and then having her turning up lost on that stormy day. That is how this all got started, is it not?"

"You are very insightful. Tell me, what do you know?"

"Enough. I know my history well enough to fill in some gaps." Valentina shrugged.

Kevin gave Valentina a look of confusion. "What the hell does history have to do with anything?"

"More than you know."

"Tell me," Arthur said slowly, "How many of you know? About us?"

"Hard to say. I believe most of us know by now, with the exception of the Americans and Sota."

"Know what?" It was obvious Kevin did not like being out of the loop.

"I was not expecting this at all. I was hoping we'd get through this without telling you," Arthur stated grumpily.

"Sorry. We kinda got involved in some way or another. But don't worry." Valentina put a finger up to her lips.

"Seriously, what the hell is going on? What am I missing out on?"

Valentina turned to Kevin and said in the most serious face on, "That Roderich can make fire proof pianos."

And everyone in the room burst into laughter, except for Kevin, who not only had no idea what she was talking about, because he had never heard about Eurovision. And Roderich, who no doubt was still bitter about that piano.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kevin pestered everyone about it for a long while after that, so Alfred took him aside and explained the nation ordeal. Needless to say, the two of them had a very exciting conversation, once Kevin got over the fact that Alfred is 200 years or so older than him.


	14. Chapter 14

"Do you have the impression that there is something going on that we don't know about?" Kate asked Sota. They were in the boy flat, where it was completely empty.

"Yes, and I believe I know what it is too," Sota said slowly, "Though it sounds crazy when I put it all together. Like something from an anime."

"As long as there aren't any magical girl transformations, I think I can handle it."

Sota nodded. "No magical girl transformations. From what I have pieced together, the people we have been hanging around with for the past few days are personifications of different countries in the world."

"Ok, that does sound weird. Maybe they are all just ambassadors?" Kate suggested.

"No, I don't think so. The interactions between them all sound like history coming alive. Like the arguments between Francis and Arthur, who just happen to be from France and England?"

"Coincidence, possibly."

"Alfred and Ivan, America and Russia? Alfred and Arthur?"

"They don't argue."

"You weren't there. The two of them were arguing about how to spell the word "color"."

"There's a difference?" Kate asked, confused.

"In England, they spell it with a "u"."

"That makes no sense. There’s no “u” pronounced in the word at all." For all of her linguistics work, Kate never paid that much difference between how English worked in America, England, and Australia.

"As Alfred was saying."

"Ok, I see the point… I'm still not entirely convinced."

"Then let's ask Kiku." Sota stood up, "I was going to talk to him anyway about an anime we both have seen."

"And what anime is that?"

"Attack on Titan."

* * *

 

"I'm going to tell him," Taylor stated, "Like I'm actually going to tell him."

"Tell who about what?" Gretel asked, confused.

"Feliciano about the Holy Roman Empire. I have this bad feeling if he is told completely at the party. I don't care what Gilbert thinks about it; it's obvious he doesn't understand the circumstances of the whole bit."

"Gilbert is going to notice."

Taylor rolled her eyes. She did like Gilbert (he was a cool dude after all), but she cared about Feliciano's mental state a bit more. "Then at the very least, I'll tell him the Holy Roman Empire lived."

"I don't know much about history," Martina's voice perked up, "But that country died a really long time ago. Didn't it?"

"Depends on your definition of dead," Gretel said slowly.

"Why?" Taylor asked. "Dead is dead and alive is alive."

"Obviously not by nation standards. They work by different sort of rules. How else would you explain Gilbert still being alive when Prussia was dissolved a long time ago?"

"So what exactly is his job now? He must have some purpose," Taylor pointed out.

Gretel stood up. "Then let's go find him and ask him."

"Do you mind if I come along," Martina asked.

Gretel and Taylor looked at each other; Taylor shrugged, "Might as well, she'll find out soon enough."

"And why is that?"

"Well, do you honestly think that the nations aren't going to dress up as the traditional clothing of their countries? I know I'd be disappointed if they weren't."

* * *

 

"Gilbert!" Taylor called out, waving to get the attention of the Prussian, who was sitting alone looking out at the countryside.

Gilbert looked up and grinned at the group. "Isn't it the women of the hour? What can I do you for?"

"We have a question… something I don't know if you would be comfortable talking about or not. It concerns… your nation status? Would that be the right word for it?"

Gilbert's grin faded into a serious look. "What about it?" he asked, "I'd think you'd understand that on your own."

"The fact is that your nation was dissolved a long time ago. Why are you still around?"

Gilbert closed his eyes. "In a way, after World War II, I was assigned to Eastern Germany, seeing as that was split."

"But Germany is reunited."

"It's not like I understand it either. I know that even after a nation is dissolved, they tend to hang around for a bit. Even after they die, they sometimes come back for a visit."

"Really?"

"Ja. It isn't the best of surprises; at least not with Vati."

"So you do have families," Gretel said.

Gilbert shrugs, "Not in the same sense as humans do. It's more of attachment to the people who find you. Like Vati is Vati because he found me when I was still a young nation... I wasn’t even a nation then either..." His eyes seemed to remember something from ages ago.

"So… were all Prussians as awesome as you are?" Martina asked, with a bit of a smile on her face.

That made Gilbert grinned. "Of course! Who'd you think I get all my awesomeness from?"

* * *

 

"You are very much like Connan with your detective work," Kiku commented to Sota after hearing what the Japanese student had to say.

"Well?" Kate asked.

"What he said is true. Each of us is a personification of our nation."

"So that would make you…?"

"Japan," Kiku said, bowing slightly.

"Alright, so how is it that you all can understand one another? You all have different languages as the national language."

"Ah, yes, we were all born knowing two languages: the national language of our personal country, and the nation language so we can converse with one another. Any others is learned by us in our free time."

"And everyone learned English?"

"Most. Some didn't. Yet seeing as many tourists are from English speaking countries, most of us found it best to learn that language to better help them."

"The nation language… what is the root of it? Surely it is from an Eastern nation or somewhere in Africa."

"I am not sure," Kiku admitted, "Yao knows more about that than I do. Though… he doesn't speaking English all that well."

"It's alright. I'll listen carefully next time I hear it and I can probably figure it out from there."

* * *

 

Alfred's phone rang, which he was surprised about. The tune was of "Shipping Up to Boston". "Yo, Abbey! What's up?" Most everyone assumes that Alfred's favorite is John, however, Mr. United States has a few other favorites too, all of whom were the original 13 colonies (except for Texas, but he was an exception).

"I'm just letting you know that I'm getting on the plane and heading over," Abigale said. She sounded a bit worn out.

"Sweet. Cool. Alright. I was kinda expecting you sooner than this though."

"Stuff came up. I won't be able to stay too long either."

"What kind of stuff?"

"I'll tell you later." The line cut off. Abigale was like that when she was tired. She reminded Alfred a lot of Arthur.

And speaking of the Englishman… "You never told me, what are you dressing up for the party tomorrow?" Arthur asked, coming into the room.

"I want it to be a surprise." Alfred said, grinning.

"Meaning you don't have one." Arthur crossed his arms.

"For your information, I do. I just want to see your face when I walk in with it on."

Arthur gave Alfred a wary look. "If this is that suit…"

"No, no. Not the suit. I don't think I could ever wear that thing. No, this is so much better than that."

"I still say you are making this up."

"Would you like to bet on it? If my costume isn't as cool as I say it is, you can do whatever you want to me."

Arthur choked on the air; it took him a moment to recover. "And if not?"

Alfred smirked, "You have to do dance in front of everyone at the party."

Arthur thought about it for a moment; Alfred could see Arthur's mind calculating the odds. "Alright."

They shook hands on it: green and blue sparks danced on their hands. Alfred immediately pulled his hand away. "What the f-ck did you just do?"

Arthur was surprised as well, though not as much as Alfred. "It's something that happens when you make a promise or swear or oath or make a bet in this case. It doesn't mean anything really, except it binds you to your word. It usually happens more with Seamus. I'm just surprised that blue sparks were in this, considering you apparently can't do magic..." Arthur gave Alfred a look, "At least what is what you say."

Alfred blew air through his nose angrily. Again with the magic. He was about to tell Arthur to shove that up his a-, but he was reminded of what happened on the plane. "Can I tell you something?"

"What is it?"

"Lucille called me when I was going over to Switzerland."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Arthur was trying to remember who she was; he knew she was one of Alfred's states.

"I heard her trying to call me on the plane. My phone was off, so there was no ringing."

"But you could hear it?"

Alfred nodded, "I also heard her pleading for me to pick up."

Arthur looked thoughtful for a moment. "Visions…"

"But it was something happening in the present time... maybe..."

"But in a different place. Trust me, it's not unheard of. Lukas can do it too, though he controls his. Brittania had visions as well, from past, present, and future, and hers couldn't be controlled. Tell me, were your eyes glowing?"

"Dude, I can't exactly see my eyes."

"Well, what did Matthew say?" Arthur asked, slightly annoyed.

"He didn't say."

"Let's go get him then. Where is your brother?"

Alfred shrugged. "His room?"

They went to Matthew's room. Arthur was going to knock, but Alfred was first and he opened the door, where he was shirtless and wearing a hunter's cap. "Oh, hi…" the Canadian said sheeplishly, taking off the hat hurriedly.

"Sorry, Matthew," Arthur said, "I _was_ going to knock." He glared over at Alfred.

"It's fine,” Matthew said quietly, “I'm used to Alfred barging in."

Arthur whacked Alfred in the back of the head, then turned back to Matthew, "When you and Alfred were on the plane ride over here, did his eyes glow?"

Matthew nodded at once, shoving his grey sweatshirt that had a maple leaf in the center of it back on.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Alfred asked, a bit hurt.

"I didn't think it was important," Matthew said, "Besides, you hate it when I bring up magic stuff concerning you."

"Well, that settles it,” Arthur said after a few moments of silence, “You do have magic."

Alfred walked off, not wanting to talk about it. 'It's official now,' he thought, 'And I can't run from it anymore.' So he goes outside for a run. Ironic, isn't it?


	15. Chapter 15

The group was practicing one last time before the party when a girl came in. She had light brown hair that almost gave her a dirty blonde look, and deep brown eyes. Her skin was slightly tanned, like a natural tan. She wore black dress pants and a deep blue blouse. Her face didn't look friendly, but it wasn't exactly angry either. Just gravely serious, like a resting bitch face.

"Excuse me?" she asked nice enough in an Americanised German, "Do you know where Alfred is?"

Gretel, seeing as she was the only one to understand the language, shook her head. "He isn't here, and we don't know where he is staying. If you would like to wait for him here, that is fine. He should be here around noon. Can I ask who you are?"

"Abigale." She looked at the group for a moment before saying in English, "I take it you are the band Alfred has been freaking out about for the party tonight."

"Yes." The band looked at Abigale curiously as she took a seat in a chair close to the stage.

"What? Do I have something on my face?"

"No, it is just…" Kate said, "Where are you from?"

"The United States."

"And you are here for the party too?"

Abigale nodded. "I'm coming along as a date, nothing more." The way she said date made it sound like it was anything but.

The doors opened up and Alfred came in. "Abigale, you made it!"

Abigale walked over to Alfred and slapped him in the face. If she was a bit taller, no doubt she would have hit him in the back of the head instead. "Why weren't you at the airport?"

"Um, well…"

The band members looked at each other awkwardly, while Abigale chewed off Alfred's ear. "Is she…"

"No, she's from the states."

"But why…"

Kate had an idea. "Excuse me? What state are you from exactly?"

Abigale raised an eyebrow, "Massachusetts, why?"

"Just wondering," Kate said as a few of the band members were nodded in understanding, "I'm from the states as well."

Abigale shrugged seriously, and rolled her eyes back over at Alfred.

"Did you bring the costume?" Alfred asked, his eyes wide like a child in anticipation.

"Yeah, because unlike you, I can remember small important details."

A few of the students snickered at this.

"Geez, alright, I get it. But to be honest, you didn't ask me to come get you."

"So I call you that I'm here and you just think it's because of nothing?"

"Ahh…"

"You know, with context, this just got a whole lot more funnier," Kevin said to Victoria.

Victoria glared at Kevin. "You did not just say that."

Kevin looked utterly confused, "What?"

"More funnier? It's one or the other."

Alfred and Abigale left. "This just got a whole lot more complicated," Taylor stated.

"And why is that?" Sota asked.

"If state personifications are a thing, provinces must be as well."

"I wouldn't dwell on it," Victoria said, "Life is complicated enough as it is."

* * *

 

Taylor walked through the city looking for Feliciano after practice. She knew that someone had to talk to the Italian before the party so that he wouldn't freak out when he would be fully told. She finally found him on a bench with a bible, though it looked rather homey for a bible.

"Feli!"

Feliciano looked up at the sound of his name. He quickly closed the bible and smiled kindly. "Taylor."

The Canadian joined Feliciano on the bench. "I've been looking for you everywhere."

"Why, did something happen?" His face paled a little.

"Sort of. It's not new news for those who know. And since this affects you most of all, I figured I'd tell you, before the party. I guess a childhood friend of yours is going to be at the party."

Feliciano started shaking his head in a chiding way; when he realized that Taylor was being absolutely serious, it became one out of disbelief. "No, no, he died. A long time ago."

Taylor shook her head, "He was badly wounded, but he survived."

The Italian stood up and paced around. He slipped into his native language and spoke rapidly. Taylor understood practically none of it, but she did understand that he was furious and confused and upset at the same time. 'And this is why he needed to be told beforehand,' she thought.

"Are you done?" Taylor asked once Feliciano quieted down.

Feliciano nodded and sat back down.

"From what I've heard about him, he would have come to you if he could."

"He could have sent a letter; he could have had someone write one for him."

"But he couldn't." Taylor really wanted to explain everything, however, Gilbert really wanted Feliciano to find out at the party and thusly, she couldn’t explain the fact that it was Germany all along.

Feliciano closed his eyes. Frustration. Sadness. Confusion. Grief. Rejoicing. All of it rolled up in a shitpile of feels. "Just what could have happened?" Feliciano asked quietly, more to himself than Taylor.

"That's going to be a question for him, not me."

The Italian put his head in his hands.

"I have an idea, come back to the hall with me."

"Why?"

"I think the best way to release stress is putting it through music. You are the singing type, so you should know what I'm saying."

Feliciano nodded and walked with Taylor back to the party hall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Insert awesome moment where Feliciano and Taylor do karaoke.


	16. Chapter 16

Ivan was surprised that Ludwig was not the first nation at the party. By the time Ivan arrived, some of the bosses were already there. Though, as Ivan looked around the first room, the German boss was nowhere to be found either.

After leaving his boss to talk with some of the other Scandinavian bosses, Ivan went into the other room, where a few of the nations were already gathered. Music was already playing, but Ivan didn't really recognize it.

Currently, Ivan’s attire was an old uniform for royal guards of the Tsar back in the early 1900’s. To be honest, he himself was surprised he still had it considering the whole revolution period his nation had gone through.

The first nation he spotted was Matthew, who was in hunter's clothing (that sported the Canadian flag), and sunglasses. This made Ivan a bit nervous for a reason he could not put his finger on. "Matvey," Ivan said in a shaky manner.

The Canadian turned around and lifted his sunglasses so that Ivan could see Matthew's eyes. "Oh, hi, Ivan," Matthew said, smiling the way he usually did, "I like your costume."

"Thank you. I'm glad someone likes it." Ivan said.

"Why? Does your boss not like it?" Matthew asked out of curiosity.

"Not really, though he was not a fan of the whole costume thing to begin with."

"I'm not surprised. Many of the bosses have decided not to get into costume. Though, I don't know if you saw my new boss. He's in a hockey uniform."

At that moment, Kumajiro popped out from behind Matthew. Ivan had seen the little polar bear on occasion at some of the world meetings. No one else seemed to notice the little guy, save from Dylan. Kumajiro had a yellow wig on and was wearing a maple leaf t-shirt. "Who I am?" the small creature said as he fell from Matthew's shoulder into his arms.

"He looks like you," Ivan commented.

Matthew sighed, "It was Alfred's idea. He got Kuma into this outfit, not me."

"Speaking of, where is he?"

Matthew shrugged, "I don't know. He said he had to go get someone, but he didn't say who. His boss is a bit worried though, even though he knows by now Alfred does his own thing far too often."

"Oh?"

"Alfred has a habit of running around the white house with a water gun and shoots at all the body guards."

"And they let him?"

"I've had to explain to them that Alfred does this all the time with us too, constantly," Matthew admitted sheepishly, "Though this boss has been much more relaxed with the water gun shenanigans."

* * *

 

Arthur and Francis came to the party together. Yes, together, because Francis pestered Arthur enough about it (and by that, it had taken him an hour to convince Arthur to go with him to the party).

"It isn't the end of the world for two old friends to go." Francis was telling Arthur as they walked over to the building the party was being held at.

Arthur scoffed a bit at this, but didn't verbally reject that idea as they entered into the second room. After all, they were friends now, right? At least on more friendly terms.

Arthur was currently in his pirate clothes, something that he had not sported in a very long time… at least in waking terms. Though in those dreams, he was the commander of the sea navy, not a pirate. Francis was also in an old uniform of his, though not in the roguish sense.

"Of all things you could be, why Musketeer?" Arthur asked.

"Why? You don't think I look fabulous in this?" Francis said, brushing his hair aside in a flashy manner, "Should I take it off?"

"You will do no such thing," Arthur said sternly, making Francis laugh a little.

They entered the building and said their hellos to their respective bosses before going into the other room where the other nations were gathered in.

"Arthur. Papa." Matthew said, waving at the two newcomers.

Arthur could see that Ivan was with Matthew. While normally Ivan would freak the Englishman out, in this context he didn't seem half as scary as he would be normally. It could have been Matthew's calmness with Ivan.

Matthew gave Francis a big hug as Ivan faced Arthur. "Oh, so we have another pirate today."

Arthur raised an eyebrow. "What?"

Instead of explaining more, Ivan turned to another direction and said, "Antonio!"

The Spaniard looked up and instantly locked eyes with Arthur. "Oh no," Arthur groaned. Indeed, Antonio was also in his pirate clothing.

"Hola, Inglaterra, we meet again," Antonio said with a devilish grin on his face.

Arthur turned to Francis, "I thought you said the he was going to be a bull fighter."

"He must have changed his mind," Francis said in an unconvincing voice.

"You know, Arthur, you do owe me a rematch," Antonio said with a bit of a wink.

"Maybe after," Arthur said, "I'd rather not here."

Kiku, who had finally come over to the group gave a disappointed face.

* * *

 

"Wow… Alfred wasn't kidding when he said he had a good costume," Matthew said.

Arthur turned around and felt like he was transported to another time and place. Alfred's costume was from the colonial period. It was typical clothing for the time, weighing toward the side of the every working man and not the wealthy class. Next to him was a girl whom Arthur had not seen for a long time: Abigail. She too wore clothing from that period, though hers reflected what the women wore.

"So," Alfred said as he came over to the small group of gathered nations (Abigail went off to greet a few nations from the Middle East), "What do you think?"

The more Arthur looked, the more he recognized that outfit. _"I don't believe what you are doing is right." Alfred looked out of the window at the resistance going on outside. "Why would people be angry with you if you were doing something good?"_ "It suits you," was the only thing that Arthur could bring himself to say.

This made Alfred smile like a kid. "You like it then?"

"I did not say that. I am only saying that you have a good costume."

Alfred smiled even wider. "I win the bet then."

Arthur mentally groaned. He had forgotten about that stupid bet. "Are you serious?"

"A bet is a bet. But you don't have to dance now. There's a song that I hope comes on that I want to see you dance to."

"And am I given the pleasure to know what this song is?"

Alfred thought about it for a moment, then shook his head, "Naw, where's the fun in that?"

"It would give me great comfort to know that I am not going to dance to a song that will make me look like a fool."

"And as the American said," Scotty interjected, coming from out of nowhere behind Arthur, "Where's the fun in that?" He gave Alfred a thumbs up before going off again, laughing at Arthur's grimace.

* * *

 

"You know, Ludwig, you've been really quiet. Like, I know you're usually quiet, but not this quiet." Feliciano commented as he and Ludwig walked over to the party. Feliciano was actually surprised that Ludwig was going with him to the party because earlier that week, he made a comment saying that he was going with his boss. Yet, at around the time Feliciano was going to go, Ludwig was there waiting for him.

"Sorry," Ludwig said gruffly. That was another thing: Ludwig had been sounding weird since he picked Feliciano up. "There's, ah, a surprise at the party... and I'm nervous." Almost like he was trying to get is voice to sound a certain way... or maybe he was just catching a cold.

Feliciano nodded as he said, "I'm sure it will work out well." Though, he knew what the surprise was already... probably. Holy Roman Empire... still alive after all this time and has now decided to show himself.

"Ja, I... I hope you like it... the surprise..."

Feliciano silently thanked Taylor for letting him in the know beforehand. "You know, you could have tried to dress up for this," the Italian said with a slight grin on his face.

"I've already told you, I'm not doing that for this. It's not like it's required."

Feliciano pulled out a pair of cat ears over Ludwig's head. "And you better not take it off." The Italian smiled at the German, trying to hide his own nervousness.

Ludwig rolled his eyes as they entered into the party.

"Feli! Ludwig!" Antonio said, coming over. He was in a pirate outfit. "Have you seen Gilbert? I was expecting him to be here by now."

Feliciano shook his head, "He wanted to go with someone else." At least that was the explanation Ludwig gave to Feliciano.

Antonio looked stumped at then, then he remembered something, "Right, there's someone who wants to talk to you, Feli."

Antonio took Feliciano over to the other side of the giant room, where Elizabeta and Roderich were talking to a person in a black cape and matching hat. The Italian stopped in his tracks and looked at the scene in front of him. "Holy Rome?" Feliciano asked quietly. Sure, he was told that this nation would be here, but hearing about it and actually seeing him are two different things.

The man in the cloak turned around and Feliciano felt that he was taken back to the fay they first met. Whatever leftover bitterness Feliciano had felt was cast aside in this moment.

"Hello, Feliciano," Holy Roman Empire smiled.

Feliciano cape up to Holy Roman Empire slowly, then gave him a hug. "I missed you." In that moment, all the world could have melted away without the two lovers noticing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone is curious, Scotty is wearing a kilt and Kiku is dressed up as one of the main five from "Cute High Earth Love Defense". Also, the song is "Shipping Up to Boston". The dance that goes along with it looks more like an Irish step type thing, which is why Alfred wanted Arthur to do that.


	17. Chapter 17

Gilbert took a deep breath as he watched the last of the bosses leave for the night. It was tiring being the stuck up individual that Ludwig always seemed to be. Feliciano had him worried for a little bit; thank goodness that he could slip away once Ludwig got in touch with Feliciano. Also, that he did pay decent enough attention to world affairs enough to pass off as Ludwig.

When he could, he got behind the stage. "All is ready when you are," he said, giving them a wink.

He got a few thumbs up in recognition before Gilbert ran off again, running into Francis, Antonio, and Arthur.

"Ludwig, we have been looking for you," Francis said, winking at the German with a knowing glance.

"Ja, why?"

"We're looking for Gilbert," Antonio said, "I have not seen him at all during this party and he said he was going to be here. After all, he was one of the people to bring it to life."

"Ja, well, something must have come up," Gilbert tried to give a worried look, "I do hope he is alright."

"Come now, this is Gilbert we’re talking about," Francis said, trying to cheer the small group up, "I'm sure he is fine."

"Ja…" Gilbert made to move from this group, but at that moment, Feliciano and Ludwig came over. The Italian had this guilty look on his face, which in turn made Gilbert feel a bit guilty. 'Feli… haven't you figured it out yet?' he thought as everyone's attention was turned to the stage, where Kate was holding a microphone.

"Welcome to everyone! I hope that you all have had a wonderful evening so far. Earlier this week, we had a song request for a couple that… well, to be honest their whole story is a bit confusing. And we felt that it would do a bit of justice to their story to explain it a little bit. And maybe they themselves can understand it too."

"That's new," Gilbert whispered to Francis, "They never talked about doing anything more than playing that song."

"So it is a surprise gift for you too. Enjoy it," Francis replied back as Gennarino and Gretel came onto the stage. Gennarino was wearing a bonnet while Gretel had a hat on that looked a lot like Ludwig's when he was the Holy Roman Empire.

88888

Feliciano did like the music. He figured out quickly that Gennarino was supposed to be him while Gretel was supposed to be Holy Roman Empire, which of course, Feliciano pointed out to nation himself. "You know I can figure things out on my own," Holy Rome said, then apologized soon thereafter, saying that it was a rude comment to make.

The second song ("Marukite Chikyuu - Holy Roman Empire version") did make Feliciano cry a little bit. It was the ending song for Holy Roman Empire, or that was how it was portrayed on stage.

"Hey, it's ok," Holy Roman Empire said comfortingly as Kevin (who had a white wig on… possibly playing as Gilbert) picked up the hat that Gretel purposefully dropped then ran off stage once again.

During the third song ("A Thousand Miles"), Feliciano could actually feel HRE shaking. "Is something wrong?" Feliciano asked quietly.

"It's… I never knew who much you missed hi… me."

"Ve, I did. I still do, but you're here again, so there is nothing to fear." But Feliciano didn't even feel convinced with his own words. What was going to happen when the party was over? Holy Roman Empire was no longer a nation in the modern world. Was there something that Feliciano was looking over?

At the end of the third song, Gretel came back on stage, but not as the Holy Roman Empire. She was wearing the German flag as a cape and had more of a soldier-like stance, obviously representing Germany.

The fourth song, Gretel stayed behind on stage as Gennarino ran off. She started singing the song "Once Upon a December" in her native tongue. 'Why?' Feliciano thought as the song went on, 'Germany doesn't have any kind of secret past… though, when I first met him, Gilbert kept accidentally referring to him as Holy Roman Empire… but that was because he missed his brother.'

_"And a song, someone sings…"_ Gretel looked at the hat that represented HRE and picked it up as the lines of Feliciano's favorite song rang out: _"Draw a circle, that's the earth. Draw a circle, that's the earth. Draw a circle, that's the earth. My name is Italy!"_

'Wait...' Feliciano looked over at Ludwig, but as it turned out, it wasn't Ludwig at all, but Gilbert dressed up to look like Ludwig (he had by that point taken off the wig). Slowly, the Italian looked up at HRE and took off his hat and pushed back his hair.

Feliciano stared for a few moments before asking hesitantly, "Lud?"

The German nation nodded. "Es tut mir Leid," he said, "I meant to tell you sooner, but…"

Feliciano didn't let Ludwig finish; instead he placed a finger on the German's lips. He wasn't exactly angry; more confused than anything. "When did you remember?" the Italian asked quietly. A long time ago, when the two of them first met, Feliciano had asked Ludwig before about Holy Roman Empire; at the time, Ludwig had said he knew nothing and Feliciano left it at that.

"Not that long ago. I didn't know how to tell you. I knew you were hurting, but…"

Feliciano once again silenced Ludwig. "Was all this your idea?"

"Nein, this was Gilbert's. But he never told me that..." For the third time, Feliciano silenced Ludwig, but this time he gave him a kiss on the lips in order to do so. Feliciano could feel Ludwig's face get warm, but the German didn't turn away from the kiss.

Memory. Feliciano could forgive his love for that.

* * *

 

**(Imagine credits rolling or something to that extent)**

**(also, like on the sidelines, everyone dancing, because why not) (Especially Feliciano and Germany since this is their song)**

Heart beats fast

Colors and Promises

How to be brave

How can I love when I'm afraid to fall

But watching you stand alone

All of my doubt

Suddenly goes away somehow

One step closer

Sono morta ogni giorno

Aspettando te

Tesoro, non aver paura

Ti ho amato

Per mille anni

Ti amero

Per mille anni ancora

Time stands still

Beauty in all he is

I will be brave

I will not let anything take away

What's standing in front of me

Every breath

Every hour has come to this.

One step closer

Ich jeden Tag gestorben

Warten auf Sie

Liebling, hab keine Angst

Ich liebte dich

Tausend Jahre

Ich liebe dich

Für tausend mehr

I had died every day

Waiting for him

Come on, now

Don't be afraid

You have loved him

For a thousand years

And will love him for a thousand more

And all along I believed

I would find you

Time has brought your heart to me

I have loved you for a thousand years

And I'll love you for a thousand more.

* * *

 

**I'm going to end this like a Marvel movie and have an extra scene that has nothing to do with what has just transpired (but is related to the next story).**

In the future at an unknown time:

The Illuminati waited by the docks in the northern area of Europe, in the section that used to be called Normandy. In his hand was a mask that he had taken with him as he ran from his homeland. Out of all the things he could have taken, he was even surprised with himself that he had taken such a joyful looking object. This was something that was usually worn during Festival, a holiday that will no longer be celebrated.

His world ended a few years ago, when the attack on Italy succeeded and was taken over by New Rome, a nation that had been growing power in the north for a very long time. Since then, new nations had been sprouting up all over the world. A new world order was being established, leaving the Illuminati without a country to call home. Unofficially exiled.

The Illuminati traced the scar on his face. He could still remember the rubble hitting him from above as he saved his brother, one of the people he held dear. The day he was forced to change himself in order to survive in this new world order. To be truthful, he barely remembered his life prior to the attacks. The only people who helped him remember were the Kreuzritter and the Mafia. The Kreuzritter constantly had problems with a few of the newer nations asking him for advice, and the Mafia typically stayed in his home region. So most of the time, the Illuminati was usually alone.

A buzzer went off on the Illuminati's phone, scaring him completely. After a few moments, he calmed down enough to put his mask back on and answer the call. "Hello?" he asked uncertainly.

"Hi, it's me." The Illuminati could see the Kreuzritter on the screen of the phone, mask off so he could see the Kreuzritter's blue eyes and blonde hair.

"Why do you have your mask off?" the Illuminati asked sullenly.

"Why do you have yours on all the time?" the Kreuzritter asked back, "Your scar isn't as bad as the Mason's."

"I'd rather have it on. I feel more like myself with it on."

The Kreuzritter sighed sadly. "Well, are you busy right now?"

"I haven't been busy with anything for about twenty years. Why?"

"There's something I have found under the streets of Old Berlin. Some kind of underground system. Would you like to explore it with me?"

The Illuminati smiled underneath his mask; even after all that time, it was hard for him to say no to some alone time with the Kreuzritter. "Seeing as I have nothing else. I will be there in a few days time."

The Kreuzritter smiled and nodded, then ended the call.

The Illuminati looked out once again into the sea. He silently prayed for two things: 1 - that he would have some use in this new world order or 2 - that his end would come swiftly so that he wouldn't have to suffer internally anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And this ends World Party. There is one more story in this series: A Twist in Fate - Timepieces and Revolutions. This is a story I've been slightly alluding to for a while now, always slightly and never with much detail. I'm hoping to be working on that over the next few months, however I can make no promises because life. I've got a big project ahead of me that is going to be eating up time over the next year, along with my other school work. However, I promise that I will finish this entire series (unless tragedy strikes and I die without warning, in which case I apologize in advance).


End file.
